


Children of Middle Earth

by Midnight_Rainstorm



Category: The Hobbit (Jackson Movies), The Hobbit - All Media Types, The Lord of the Rings (Movies), The Lord of the Rings - All Media Types
Genre: Abuse, Angst, Anxiety, Aragorn is a confused parent, Battle, Blood and Injury, Children of Characters, Depression, Future, Implied Gimli/Legolas Greenleaf, Mention of Kiliel, Mention of abuse, Mild Gore, Original Character(s), Suicidal Thoughts, mention of mental health
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-14
Updated: 2021-01-19
Packaged: 2021-03-03 20:15:55
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 17
Words: 50,301
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24721435
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Midnight_Rainstorm/pseuds/Midnight_Rainstorm
Summary: The year is 3039 and two young captains are sitting out on a peaceful night, that was until orcs started to pop out of the ground and follow a fell voice to the now ruin parts of Mordor. It is now up to the two young captains to take up arms and follow in their parent's footsteps to find out who is behind all of this and, ultimately, save Middle Earth.
Relationships: Aragorn | Estel/Arwen Undómiel, Kíli (Tolkien)/Tauriel (Hobbit Movies)
Comments: 9
Kudos: 12





	1. Prolouge

**Author's Note:**

> This was an idea I had months ago that I have decided to write about now. Hope you all enjoy!

Year 3010  
An army of dwarves gather in a bar late at night. They drink and sing songs, getting ready for the battle ahead. A hooded figure sits at the bar counter, looking down at something in their hands. The figure wears dwarven armor, colored silver and gold. It also wears black boots and brown pants. The cloak they wear is colored brown and the hood of the cloak covers the entirety of their head, so you could see nothing but their eyes, which are big and dark brown. This is the dwarves leader, Minasel of Erebor, captain in training. Although being of the young age of 68, she was chosen to lead the army of dwarves into a battle for the first time.  
An older dwarf with an orange beard sits next to Minasel, two pints of ale in his hands. Minasel looked over at the two pints and then the dwarf, “I appreciate the offer, but you know I don’t drink, Avli.”  
The dwarf, whose name is Avli, smirked at the captain in training, “Who said that one of these pints was for you?”  
Avli then proceeded to chug down an entire pint of ale and then give a loud belch. Minasel smiled a bit but then looked away. Avli took a sip of the second pint and then looked at Minasel, leaning on the counter, “Alright, tell me what’s wrong.”  
Minasel smiles slightly, “I don’t know what you are talking about.”  
“Please, I’m married to a lovely but over dramatic wife and I have three daughters, one being a teenager. I can tell when any lass has an issue or is upset.”  
Minasel smiled slightly at her elderly friend and then looked over at the other dwarf soldiers who were laughing and singing. Almost instantly, Avli knew what she was thinking about, “Oh, so that is why you look so upset.”  
Minasel looked away at the crowd, “I shouldn’t be captain, Avli.”  
“And why not?!”  
“There are plenty of dwarves more capable than I. Much more capable and much older.”  
“You are 68. That’s the adult age for a dwarf.”  
“But I’m not an adult, Avli. I’m at the age where I should be dreaming of courtship and wearing fancy dresses. Not leading a group of dwarves to their deaths.”  
Avli looks at the young captain in training as she looks down at the counter and slightly rubs her eyes. “Listen lass,” Avli began, “I know for a fact that there is no one in this group of dwarves who is more capable in leading an army than you are. You have been practically made for this role as captain. No matter what, this army will stand behind you and follow your every order with pride. Don’t you forget that.”  
Minasel smiles a bit, “Thanks, Avli. I needed to hear that.”  
Avli smiles at his captain, “And if you need a second opinion, ask any of the others. They all agree that you are a great captain.”  
Minasel hides her face in her hands, embarrassed, which caused Avli to laugh. Silence between the two only lasted a couple of minutes before Minasel spoke up. “What are you going to do once this battle is over, Avli?” Minasel asked.  
Avli took a swig of his pint then smiled at Minasel, “More than likely go back home to my beautiful wife and children. You should definitely come down to the house. My Dorina can make a mean stew and I’m sure Adola, Adlia, and Alina would love to hear some stories out of you. They already heard all of mine!”  
Minasel chuckled and looked down at her hands, smiling sadly. Avli put a hand on Minasel’s shoulder, smiling with such sympathy for her, “I’m sure your parents are mighty proud of you, lass. They are probably looking down and saying ‘wow look at our daughter! She’s a warrior if I have ever seen one!’.”  
Minasel looks at Avli and hugs him tight. Avli smiled softly and wrapped his arms around Minasel, in order to comfort her.  
~  
The next day, Minasel and her army slowly make their way to the orc camp. Before the camp was in sight, Minasel gathered the group together in order to give out plans and a speech. “This is it,” Minasel said nervously, “We are going to attack this orc army before it gets any closer to villages of people. I scouted the terrain last night and realized our best bet is to attack the camp from behind. They won’t expect us there, so we can attack with the upper hand.”  
“That’s a great idea!” one dwarf stated.  
“Classic Minasel!” Another dwarf said.  
“She always comes up with the perfect plans!” Another dwarf cheered.  
Minasel nods and puts a hand up to silence the dwarves. Once they all settled down, Minasel spoke again, “Thank you all of you for having trust in me to lead you into battle. I know I’m not the most ideal person to do so, but I do try. Your love and admiration has turned me into a stronger leader. This army wouldn’t be possible with any of you.”  
“Are you kidding?! You did this on your own!” One dwarf shouted.  
“You are the most powerful leader I have ever witnessed!” A second dwarf stated.  
“All Hail Captain Minasel!” Avli shouted.  
All the dwarves started chanting ‘Captain Minasel’ as Minasel looked at them, feeling a big smile creep on her face.  
~  
The army makes their way behind the base. They all huddle together with Minasel leading. They almost make it, until thousands of orcs appear before them with a gigantic troll. Minasel’s eyes widen as she stares at the troll. “It’s a trap...” Minasel mutters.  
The troll charges at the army as Minasel yells, “Fall back! Fall back! It’s a trap! It’s a trap!”  
~  
The sun is setting and the battle field is covered in blood. Minasel walks around the battlefield, trying to find anyone still alive. She walks over the dead bodies of both orcs and dwarves. She hears a cough behind her and immediately turns around and runs to it. It’s Avli. His face is pale and there’s three arrows in his chest. Minasel sits on her knees and holds Avli in her arms, “Avli!”  
Avli coughs and smiles weakly at Minasel, “Hello Captain.”  
Minasel shakes with tears rolling down her eyes, “I-I’m so sorry Avli. This is all my fault.”  
“It’s not your fault, captain. You didn’t know.”  
“I did an awful job protecting my troop. I’m not cut out for this, Avli.”  
“You stopped the orcs from destroying a village, didn’t you?”  
“Yes, they are all slaughtered.”  
“Then you did your job. You stood up and took control of the situation. I think you did great.”  
Avli coughs causing Minasel to gasp and cradle him. Avli chuckles, his once strong voice becoming hoarse, “Never thought I would go out so soon.”  
Minasel cries, “You won’t die, Avli. You are going to be healed and you will see your wife and children again.”  
“I don’t think so, captain. This is the end of the line for me. Would you mind doing something for me?”  
“I’ll do anything.”  
“Make sure you watch after my family while I’m gone... they need a lot of protection.”  
“Avli...”  
“And in return...”  
“Please...”  
“I’ll say ‘hi’ to your folks and tell them what a great daughter they have.”  
Avli then falls limp in Minasel’s arms. Minasel shakes Avli a bit, but he doesn’t move. She sets Avli down and quickly stands up sobbing. Minasel turns around looking at all the dead dwarf and orc bodies. They are everywhere, they surround her. Minasel holds her head, sobbing. She slowly lets go of her head and looks at her hands, shaking. Her hands are covered in blood that is not hers. She is covered in the blood of friends, comrades and enemies. She looks out and sees that the blood is not just on her hands, it is everywhere. Blood comes from the bodies of her friends, it spills from the stones of ruined buildings. It covers the ground beneath her feet. The screams of her friends and enemies ring in her ear. Minasel screams and sobs, terrified about how the world looks in her eyes.


	2. Chapter 1: A Code Between Captains

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> An introduction of a young captain of Gondor.

It is the year 3039 and a young captain makes his way out of the safety of the palace in Gondor and heads out into a dense forested area outside of Dale. Night has fallen and this captain has put his Gondor armor on with a blue undershirt and the tree of Gondor engraved into the chest plate, a great two handed sword sheathed on his back, and a dark blue cloak that hangs over his head. This is none other than Faronion, Captain of the Gondor guards. He is only 18 years old, but is still one of the toughest fighters in Gondor, maybe even the entirety of Middle Earth.  
Faronion walks into the forest feeling the late winter air blow in his face and hearing the old snow crunch under his feet. Faronion walked through the forest until he felt something poke at his back. “It’s about time you showed up.” A voice behind him said.  
Faronion turned around and was greeted by the Captain of the Erebor Guards, Minasel, with her sword pointed directly at him. The young Captain of Erebor is dressed in black gloves, brown pants and boots, and a silver chest plate with a raven engraved in it. The sleeves and the vambraces that go with the armor were made to look as if they were the raven’s wings. Underneath the armor, she wore a long blue tunic with long sleeves. To top it all off, Minasel wore a tattered brown cloak that covered her head and a sword that was sheathed at her side. Faronion smiled at his old friend, “Sorry, I had some work to finish up at Gondor.”  
Minasel’s brown eyes rolled in the back of her head, “Whatever. Just come over here.”  
Minasel walked further into the woods, Faronion following her, until they reached a cliff side that looked out towards Mirkwood. Minasel and Faronion sat down and looked up at the sky, which was painted with stars. Faronion has known Minasel ever since he was little. As he grew up, he became closer friends with Minasel, despite their obvious age gap, Minasel being 96 and Faronion being 18. You would never guess the age gap, however, since the two guards are at the same maturity rate and it should stay that way for the rest of their lives.  
Faronion sighed and laid back, “This sure is boring.”  
Minasel shrugged, “I don’t know. I think it’s kinda nice.”  
“This can’t be what being Captain of Guards was like for you when you were... you know...”  
“Younger?”  
Faronion nods hesitantly. Minasel smiled down at her friend then looked back up at the sky. “War was inescapable,” she began, laying down next to Faronion, “many people died and Captains and captains in training had a code of honor.”  
“‘Protect your kingdom, no matter the cost.’” Faronion quoted, looking at Minasel.  
Minasel nods, closing her eyes, “It was rough, but it was life. I fought everyday expecting to be put in a coffin, tucked away with my parents.”  
Even though Minasel told him about the hardships of war and even mentioned the deaths of her parents, Faronion still craved for battle. It was something he was trained for, something he was best at, and yet it was all being wasted on going on trips with the king and queen and possibly stopping a robbery in Gondor. He dreams of being able to slice the heads off orcs or take down a cave troll, but he was born at the wrong time for such things. The ring is destroyed, evil is vanquished, the world is at peace.  
“So, how is royal life at Gondor?” Minasel asked, trying to change the subject.  
“The queen has given birth.” Faronion shrugs, not making a big deal out of it.  
“Did she really?! Boy or girl?”  
“A little girl. Loud one too. You can hear her cries from the other end of Gondor.”  
“Aye, I see. Isn’t this her third child?”  
“Fourth. And yet the queen insists on more.”  
“I pray for sleep in Gondor.”  
Faronion laughed at Minasel’s sarcastic comment then looked at her, “And how about you? What has life been like in Erebor with King Thorin Stonehelm.”  
Minasel scoffs at Faronion's comment, “You know for a fact that Stonehelm will never be my king. He is but a shadow of his father. Even the ghosts of the past king’s look down on him in disgust.”  
“How do you know that?”  
“I visit the Halls of the Dead often, I just get a feeling that they are angry about him.”  
“So you are just going off of a feeling?”  
“It’s a gut feeling. You should always trust a gut feeling, Captain Faronion.”  
“I don’t. Gut feelings are just trickery that your mind plays on you. I never saw you as one to believe in mind tricks, Captain Minasel.”  
“I’m not, but trusting the feeling deep down inside is one of the reasons I have stayed alive this long. Why I have escaped dangerous situations.”  
Faronion smiles and shakes his head, “You are a strange one, Captain.”  
“Not as strange as you, Captain.” Minasel said, giving a hearty smirk.  
Talks like these aren’t a rare occurrence between the two. Faronion and Minasel share all their emotional burdens on each other. Faronion has shared all the harassment he has gone through, the stressful work he goes through on a day to day basis, and even the issues he has with his parents, and, in return, Minasel will tell about all the trauma she went through in her childhood and her time training to be captain.  
The two captains talked until they slowly started to doze off to sleep, but then they heard a loud noise off in the distance which caused them to jump onto their feet. Faronion and Minasel looked around trying to find where the noise came from, but they stopped once they looked at the sky. The stars were covered by thick black smoke and the dark blue hue changed to a dark red and orange. “What’s going on?” Minasel asked, slightly panicking.  
“I don’t know, but it’s not right,” Faronion said, staring up at the sky.  
Suddenly, a hand broke through the ground and grabbed Faronion’s leg. Faronion panicked and tried to get his leg free by shaking it and pulling it. Suddenly another arm came out from the ground and so did a body. It was an ugly creature with jagged teeth and white eyes. The creature went to bite Faronion’s leg until Minasel slashed her sword straight down the creature's skull, causing it to let go and drop dead. “What was that?!” Faronion exclaimed, panicking.  
“That, my friend, was an orc.” Minasel answered, face turning grime.  
“I thought they were supposed to all be dead!”  
As Faronion said this, more orcs started popping up from the ground and growling. “Apparently not,” Minasel said, holding her sword out in front of her.  
Faronion followed her lead and they ran into the horde of orcs. The two sliced and diced the orcs, slitting their throats, decapitating them, and running their swords through their stomach. Faronion felt an adrenaline rush and he absolutely loved it! That was until too many orcs surfaced, causing them to be slightly overpowered. Orcs surrounded Faronion and Minasel, ruining their idea to escape. The orcs inched closer until a fell voice filled the air.  
“Come home, beautiful children. Come home.” Hissed the voice.  
The orcs grunted and squealed as they ran off. Faronion and Minasel looked on, shocked. Orcs were a rare sight to see especially since the ring has been destroyed. Faronion looked at Minasel, “What do we do?”  
Minasel gave an excited grin to Faronion, “Follow them of course.”  
Minasel walked up a bit then looked back at Faronion, smiling, “Welcome to your first real adventure, Captain Faronion.”


	3. Chapter 2: The Monster That Lives Inside Her

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A new character from Minasel's mind arrives and the two captain's figure out where the orcs were going.

For several days, the orcs moved towards the dark smoke that swirled the air in the south and Faronion and Minasel followed closely. It wasn’t until the second day when the orcs decided to stop and set up camp, so the two captains did the same farther away, but still close enough where they could observe the camp from a distance. As to not be seen, Faronion and Minasel did not set up a fire, choosing the freeze and sit in the darkness that surrounds them. The only sense of warmth they had was to snuggle together. Faronion was the first to start to yawn and rub his eyes. Minasel looked up at Faronion, confused, “Are you alright?”  
Faronion nods, laying his head in Minasel’s lap, “I’m fine, just a little tired.”  
“When was the last time you slept?”  
“I’ve been up for four days. My body can only handle being up that many days before it completely gives way.”  
“I understand, my body is the same way, but why have you been awake for four days in the first place?”  
“I’ve been studying. I need to be educated.”  
“Yes, education is important. However, you shouldn’t push yourself so hard.”  
“I need to make my parents proud, Minas. This is the only way!”  
Faronion raising his tone surprised Minasel, but she understood why. Being highly educated was the only way Faronion’s parents would pay attention to him, and, in doing so, stressed himself out. Faronion is just a child whose main goal is to win the affection of his parents. He has done so much for her since they first met, the least Minasel could do for the poor boy was to let him sleep and take night-watch for the night.  
She pet Faronion’s head as she hums a soft tune, derived from an elvish lullaby. Within minutes, he falls asleep curled up in Minasel’s lap. Minasel smiled at her friend until something didn’t seem right in her eyes. Everything around her turned red and a bit grim. The moon turned red as the trees started to ooze out blood, which dripped onto the ground, and formed many dark red puddles. Minasel held Faronion close and she looked around nervously at the changing world.  
“Not tonight,” Minasel mumbled, gripping onto her sleeping friend, “Out of every single night why did it have to be tonight.”  
“Oh, you don’t want to see me?” A raspy voiced hissed back.  
Minasel looked out in front of her and there appeared a tall black figure, standing in front of her. The figure was a black, shadowy silhouette, almost like a shadow of a human man, but this figure was far from being human. What made the figure look less human was the fact that he had long fingers that almost reached the ground, glowing white eyes, and three rows of sharp teeth. The figure stood in front of Minasel with a sinister smile on his face, as he stared at her. Minasel looked at the figure, a look of pure terror in her eyes, “Of course not. Why would I ever want to see you?”  
“Why? Because we are friends, my dear Minasel.” The figure said, laughing a bit at the question that seemed idiotic to him.  
“We are not friends. You are just some strange creature in my head.”  
“A strange creature that you named. Sir Gwathraug. You were pretty proud of yourself with that idea.”  
The figure, whose name is Sir Gwathraug, suddenly turned his gaze to the sleeping Faronion. A sadistic smile grew on his lips as he moved closer to the sleeping figure. “Well, well, well,” Sir Gwathraug cooed, “is this your little friend?”  
Without hesitation, Minasel pulled out a small dagger from her boot and pointed it at Sir Gwathraug’s head, stopping him in his tracks. “Stay back. You do not touch him.” Minasel hissed.  
“You little rat!” Sir Gwathraug growled, suddenly grabbing onto Minasel’s wrist.  
Minasel dropped the dagger and immediately started to pant, panicking. Sir Gwathraug looked at Minasel with an evil smile on his face and let go of her wrist. Minasel pulled her arm away quickly and placed her hand on her chest, trying to calm down her breathing. The shadow figure laughed and stood up straight, “You pathetic little girl. You know it is disrespectful to lash out at someone who has authority over you.”  
“You have no authority over me! You have no ownership over me!” Minasel sneered, slightly shaking.  
“Oh, but I do. Look at you. Can’t even fight me, all you do is run away.”  
“That does not mean you have any type of ownership over me!”  
“Oh, but it does. I am a part of you. I affect every choice you make and every emotion you feel. You are my little doll, I am in control.”  
“I am not your doll, I am my own person! You have no control over me!”  
“Wait… are you acting this way because of your parents?”  
Minasel stayed silent, which made Sir Gwathraug give of a wicked laugh.  
“After all these years, you are trying to be a real hero like them! What a joke!” Sir Gwathraug laughed.  
“I am not trying to be like them, because I already am like them! I am finally able to be free with who I am and I am discovering that I am just like my parents! I am making them proud with the choices I am making!” Minasel sneered.  
“Oh Minasel, if only they could have seen what you did.”  
“They would not care what I did in the past, because that was not me. That was a monster. A monster that I fought off and have been fighting off for years.”  
Sir Gwathraug continues to laugh until he turns his back to Minasel and lets out a relaxed sigh. “Oh Minasel, don’t you get it?” Sir Gwauthraug hums, “No matter what you do now or how you change, you are still a monster. That part of you never leaves, it will always live inside you.”  
With that said, Sir Gwathraug disappears and the world goes back to normal, leaving Minasel clutching Faronion’s cloak, who is still asleep.  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
Finally, the orcs have reached their destination, and Faronion and Minasel were able to witness a shocking sight. The orcs were filing into the abandoned lands of Mordor, except it wasn’t abandoned. In fact, the gates entrance, that were once destroyed into rubble, were being built again and many groups of orcs from all different directions were coming into the cursed land, and Faronion and Minasel were hidden on a hillside, witnessing it. “What in the name of Durin is going on here?” Minasel whispered to Faronion.  
“I don’t know. I’ll go get a closer look.” Faronion whispered, getting ready to move towards the gates.  
Minasel stopped him, holding onto his forearm, “Just be careful, these aren’t just your everyday thieves in Gondor. These are orcs. They could tear you to shreds.”  
Faronion nodded and immediately made his way to the Black Gates. In a quick, but careful fashion, Faronion ascended the wall of the gate, being careful not to be caught by orcs who are working on the entrance. In a matter of minutes, Faronion made it to the top and was able to look over at the other side.  
Orcs were walking back and forth rebuilding the land. Some were building structures, while some were creating weapons and armor. The whole sight of it made Faronion sick to his stomach. However, a tall figure wearing black spiked armor, with a matching spiked crown, and heeled boots caught Faronion’s attention. This figure was no orc, but was instead an elf, as made clear by the figures fair skin and pointed ears. The elf also had long blonde hair with red coloring at the tips, and blood red colored eyes. The elf walked around with a sense of importance, yelling at orcs and taking orders. “No, no, no!” Faronion heard the elf yell, “That tower is supposed to be built over there, not here! Do you want me to chop your heads clean off?”  
Once the elf finished threatening a group of orcs, he turned and immediately locked eyes with Faronion, which caused Faronion to panic, let go, and fall from the wall. Everything went black for a second, but soon Faronion woke up to Minasel dragging him by his feet away from the Black Gate. Once realizing Faronion was awake, Minasel quickly helped him up to his feet. “Why did you fall off the wall? What did you see?” asked Minasel, steadying Faronion.  
“They were rebuilding Mordor. Towers, armor, weapons, everything! I think they are trying to start another war! They have a new leader!” Faronion said, starting to walk away with a determined look in his eye.  
“Another war? But who do we tell?” Minasel asked, trying to catch up to Faronion.  
“We must consult my father about this, first. He was there when the one ring was destroyed for good. He might know what is going on.”  
“The King of Gondor.”  
Faronion slightly nods and, with quick movements, the two captains make their way to the Kingdom of Gondor to seek counsel of King Aragorn Elessar, Faronion’s father.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Gwathraug is actually an elvish name. His name means "shadow-demon".  
> Faronion and Minasel are also elvish names and can be translated. Faronion means "son of a hunter" and Minasel means "star-tower".


	4. Chapter 3: Welcome Home, Son of Gondor

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Faronion returns home, but what will his parents think about him being gone for so long without warning?  
> Cute moments between Faronion and his parents

The sun rises upon Gondor, bringing another day to the kingdom and the entirety of Middle Earth. People move about the kingdom in a hurry, running their businesses, taking care of their homes, and going to shops. The busiest hour of the day has already started when Faronion and Minasel run through the gate entrance of Gondor. Faronion weaves through the crowd of people, pulling Minasel along. The kingdom folk greet Faronion and offer him their foods which he politely declines. Minasel, on the other hand, could not resist the delicacies from Gondor, so she took a couple of pastries from some sweet old women.  
Faronion was getting frustrated with the crowd of people until he bumped into a small figure. He looked down and was greeted by a little boy with long brown hair and blue eyes. He wore an off white shirt, brown pants, and brown boots to match. Faronion sighed in relief seeing that it was his little brother Eldarion.  
“You know how late you are?” Eldarion scolded, hands on his hips.  
“I know, I know, something important came up.” Faronion grumbled, rolling his eyes.  
“That’s no excuse. You were supposed to come back days ago. Mother was worried sick.”  
“I will apologize to mother later, but right now I must speak to father.”  
“Oh, and when father sees that your back you are going to be in so much trouble, Faronion!”  
“Yes Eldarion, I know. I’m trying not to think of it right now. Can you just take me to see father?”  
“Fine. Follow me.”  
The 9 year old boy led the captains through the dense crowd. The crowd ceased once the three were on the trail that leads to the Citadel of Gondor. Once away from the crowd, Minasel starts up a conversation in order to break the silence.  
“So, a little raven told me that you have a new member of the family.”  
Eldarion nods, keeping his eyes on the path, “Yes, it is a girl.”  
“A little sister, aye? And what might be her name?”  
“Celebsîr.”  
“Celebsîr. What a beautiful name! You must be very happy to be a big brother again, Eldarion.”  
“Not to be rude, Minasel, but why do you care so much about there being a new member in our family?” Eldarion asked, stopping in his tracks and looking Minasel dead in the eye.  
Faronion and Minasel both stopped and stood in front of the small 9 year old prince. Faronion stared at Minasel, ready to step in if he needed to. He knew exactly what the answer was to Eldarion’s question and he knew the answer was a topic that was a little touchy for Minasel. Although she never admitted it, Faronion knew that just mentioning it hurt Minasel deep within her soul. Minasel, however, kept a thoughtful face as if she was thinking of the answer. She then gave off a small smile as she clasped her hands together. “Well, it’s because I’m an only child,” Minasel smiled, “I always wanted to have siblings, but my parents are not around anymore so that is impossible.”  
Eldarion looked at Minasel, sadly. He shuffles over to her and holds her hand, but Minasel just laughs it off. “I guess you, your big brother, and your little sisters are the closest I’ll get to having siblings.” Minasel says, squeezing Eldarion’s hand.  
The three continued to walk the path in silence, Minasel holding one of Eldarion’s hands while Faronion held the other. After a couple of minutes of walking and complete silence, Faronion, Minasel, and Eldarion reached the main entrance of the Citadel of Gondor, where the king, queen, and their children live.  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
As the three walked to the Citadel of Gondor, they split up with Minasel and Eldarion walking into the King’s House and Faronion walking into Tower Hall itself to approach his father. Faronion placed his hands softly on the door, in order to gather up his courage and remember what he is going to say. With a slight amount of force, Faronion pushed open the double doors and walked into the halls with much stride. However, as he walked up to the throne, his father was not there. Faronion groaned knowing that he was going to have to search the entire Citadel.  
Faronion, in his search for his father, went upstairs and down hallways, sometimes going down the same hallways twice. He passed by guards training, which reminds him of the time when he used to train with them. Faronion passed by the library, remembering he still has some school work to do and cringing at the fact. He stopped once, however, when he arrived at the wall covered with larger paintings, painted by his own mother.  
The paintings were framed in a gold frame and represent important moments in Middle Earth. Starting from the creation of the world to the destruction of the ring, the pieces of art tell the entire history of the world. When he was much younger, Faronion remembers dreaming of one day having his own painting hung up for a deed he did. He still dreams of a day when that would happen, but that would be one of those dreams that are just impossible. Faronion turns on his heel and continues to search for his father, taking his thoughts of the paintings out of his head.  
Faronion continued to search until he went into the dining hall. There was his father, Aragorn Elessar, sitting at the end of a long wooden table. Stacks of paper gathered around where Aragorn was sitting. He has a quill in his hand, a jar of ink beside him, and he had a tired look in his eyes. In front of a chair that sat close to Aragorn, layed a plate of food. Aragorn looked up from his work and stared at Faronion. He did not speak, but instead gestured to the chair and plate of food. Faronion hesitated, but then slowly walked up to the chair and sat down. Upon closer examination, the plate was covered with chicken, mashed potatoes, and some mixed vegetables.  
“Go on,” Aragorn mumbled, looking at a sheet of paper that lay in front of him, “Eat your food.”  
Faronion nods, slowly eating the food that lay before him. His hunger got the best of him and started to eat faster. Once Faronion finished all the food on his plate, Aragorn sighed and put down his quill. “You were gone for sometime.” Aragorn stated, hands folded and on the table.  
“Yes, sir.” Faronion nods, head hanging down.  
“You did not ask us first, you did not even give us a word of warning. You just up and left.”  
“Trust me, father, I have a perfectly good reason in doing so.” At this moment, Faronion has his head up and is looking straight into Aragorn’s eyes.  
“Oh yeah? And what might that reason be? What reason could you possibly have to leave for days without warning?”  
“I’m sure you would do the same thing if orcs randomly started to climb out from the ground!”  
Aragorn becomes silent, his hands slightly shaking and eyes becoming bigger.  
“What?” Aragorn managed to choke out.  
“You heard me.” Faronion said, now standing up, slammed both of his hands down on the table, “Orcs… crawling out from the ground… and ATTACKING!”  
At this moment, Aragorn was standing up as well. He left the table and turned his back to it, a fist under his chin, contemplating on the matter.  
“And that is not even the worst of it.” Faronion said, walking up and standing behind Aragorn.  
Aragorn looked over his shoulder and Faronion spoke.  
“When Minasel and I followed the orcs,” Faronion sighed, looking at his father with stern and serious eyes, “they marched straight to Mordor.”  
“Impossible, Mordor was destroyed.” Aragorn spoke, shaking his head.  
“It was, but they are rebuilding and, by the looks of it, they have a new leader.”  
“What does this leader look like?”  
“The leader is a male elf. He has long, blonde hair with red colored at the tips and his nose is pointed. He wore black spiked armor with a matching black crown. He was pretty tall, but I think that was because his boots had long spikes at the bottom of the heel.”  
“And you are sure this elf was their leader and not a worker?”  
“Yes, he was yelling at all the orcs who were working on rebuilding Mordor. Oh, I almost forgot! His eyes were blood red. I will never forget the eyes, I have never seen anything like it.”  
“Neither have I, son. I have no idea who this elf may be.”  
“Then what do we do? How do we stop this?”  
“There is not much we can do. The most logical thing to do is to take out the orcs leader, but we don’t know anything about him.We would have to find information on him”  
“Well, father... I did see him in person…” Faronion hesitated, scratching the back of his head.  
“Are you offering to find information on this elf?” Aragorn asked, now fully turned around, facing Faronion.  
“Well not just me. I’ll have Minasel help me.”  
Aragorn hesitated, thinking over his son's request, but then answered, “As long as you report to me when you have any leads.”  
“Thank you, father. I will not let you down.”  
Faronion immediately ran out of the dinning hall and down the hallways, in search of Minasel so they could find some information on the elf he saw. Who would have thought that he would immediately run into her in front of the walls of pictures, but she wasn't alone. Sitting upon Minasel’s shoulders was a little girl with blue eyes and dark hair and cradled in her arms was a tiny sleeping baby swaddled in a blue blanket. The girl who sits on Minasel’s shoulders is his 6 year old sister Aerloth, and the baby is the newest addition to his family, Celebsîr.  
“Greetings Faronion, I see that your father didn’t tear you to pieces.” Minasel snickered, holding the baby close.  
“Ha ha, funny. Come on, we must head to the library.” Faronion said, about to pull Minasel away.  
“Oh no you don’t. Your mother wants to see you in the nursery.” Minasel then pushed the baby into Faronion’s arms causing him to immediately start cradling the small infant.  
Celebsîr slowly opened her blue eyes and stared at Faronion, in great confusion. Faronion bounced the baby lightly and stared back with a soft look in his eyes, in hopes that she wouldn’t start crying.  
“Did my mother send for me? Is that why you're here?” Faronion asked, looking at Minasel.  
“Sort of. Your mother did send for you, but, in all honesty, we just wanted to look at these beautiful paintings.”  
Minasel immediately moved her eyes to a large painting close to the end. The painting itself depicted how Erebor was taken back by the dwarves. There was a scene of the Battle of the Five Armies, with the dwarves' side being represented by the thirteen dwarves that went on that expedition. Fighting alongside the dwarves in the painting are Gandalf the Grey and a young Bilbo Baggins. Attacking the dwarves is the pale orc himself, Azog, riding atop his white warg. Finally, flying over the scene is a painted figure of Smaug, being shot by a black arrow with Bard Bardsman, King of Dale at the time, standing below with a longbow. Through a normal person's eyes, the painting is just an amazing reenactment of an important moment in history, but to Minasel it was so much more. This painting depicted the entirety of Minasel's heritage. It showed how her father joined twelve other dwarves to take back a mountain guarded by a gold hungry dragon. It showed the battles her father went through when trying to save the mountain. This is what Minasel lived for, this was what pulled her out of bed every morning. That someday she will do something as great as that to make her family proud, to make her father proud.  
Faronion looked at Minasel before walking down the hallway, Celebsîr still cradled in his arms. “Well, I’m going to go see my mother,” Faronion sighed, “see you two later.”  
“Bye Faronion, good luck.” Minasel answered back, waving at him.  
As Faronion walked down the hallway, he could hear the conversation Aerloth and Minasel were having.  
“Will Faronion be alright?” he hears his little sister, Aerloth, ask in her sweet innocent voice.  
“Probably not, your mother is probably going to chew him up.” Minasel answered.  
“S-she will?” Aerloth asked, now sounding scared.  
“O-of course not! I was only joking! Oh please, don’t start crying!”  
He can hear Aerloth start sniffing and Minasel shushing the poor child.  
“I know what will make you feel better… How about I tell you the story about this painting?”  
“I would like that.”  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
After turning down some corridors, Faronion finally made it to a closed wooden door that, once opened, would lead him to the nursery and, quite possibly, his death. Faronion looks at Celebsîr in hopes that he could talk over what he is going to say to his mother with his sister, but she is sound asleep. He sighs and goes to open the door, but hesitates. “No,” Faronion thought to himself, “I’m already in enough trouble. I need to be respectful.”  
He proceeded to knock on the door, making sure it wasn’t frantic. The last thing he wanted was to show that he was afraid to speak to his own mother. Suddenly, a soft female voice came from the room, “ Yes? Come in.”  
Faronion opened the door and walked into the room. The room itself was fairly sized, not too big and not too small, but has no windows. The walls and floor are covered with planks of wood from a red oak tree. The nursery itself is decorated like any normal nursery would with a box full of toys for the baby, a mobile with wooden animals hanging down, a table, a wooden crib with light blue sheets, and a wooden rocking chair. In the rocking chair sat Faronion’s mother and queen of Gondor, Arwen. She wore a beautiful, long, blue, dress with long transparent sleeves and a silver brochet under the neckline that is shaped like a star. Her long dark hair is draped over her shoulders as she sits in the rocking chair.  
Arwen quickly stood up seeing her son and moved towards him. In a swift movement she pulled Faronion into a warm embrace. Faronion laid his head softly on her shoulder, still cradling Celebsîr. After a moment together, Faronion pulled away and looked upon the tired face of his mother. “I guess I have some explaining to do.” Faronion sighed.  
“Yes, you do. Where have you been?” Arwen asked, closing the door.  
“I have been out. Trust me, I wasn’t in any trouble.” Faronion answered, laying Celebsîr in her cradle before facing Arwen, again.  
“How were we supposed to know that? You did not give us a letter of warning.”  
“I know, and I’m sorry I didn’t tell you. I was just so distracted that I forgot. I promise I will tell you next time I decide to run off and not return for days.”  
Arwen gave a soft smile to Faronion before sitting down in the rocking that is in the corner of the room. She gestured for Faronion to come join her and he did, sitting on the floor beside her and laying his head on her legs.  
“I know you do not see it, but you are very much like him.” Arwen hummed, petting her son’s head.  
“Who?” Faronion asked, closing his eyes.  
“Your father. Constantly running off without warning and usually finding trouble on the way.”  
“Well that's one thing we have in common.”  
“You also are both noble and caring and are born leaders.”  
“Is there anything we don’t have in common?”  
“You are definitely more cheerful than he is and you know how to have fun.” Arwen giggled lifting up Faronion’s face and kissing his forehead.  
Faronion laughed along with her, a wide grin forming on his face. Arwen glanced at the cloak that covers Faronion’s head and sighs, “Your father also does not constantly cover his head with a silly cloak.”  
“Come on, mother. You know exactly why I wear it.” Faronion grumbled, rolling his eyes.  
“I know why you wear it, but you are safe here so there is no need for it.”  
Faronion sighed and removed the hood of the cloak revealing the rest of his head. Faronion’s hair is brown, straight, and slightly messy. His hair is parted over to the left side of his face, which is where most of his hair resides and covers half of his face. This part of his hair also is the longest, almost reaching his collar bone. His ears, however, are the most interesting. While all his other siblings have almost human looking ears, Faronion’s ears are pointed and elf-like, just like his mother.  
Arwen smiled and softly touched his ears, as his blue eyes looked up at her, “There’s my beautiful son.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Since Arwen and Aragorn's daughters were never named in the book, I decided to make up some names. Aerloth means "sea-flower" and Celebsîr means "silver-river".
> 
> Also if you like this story and want to see some concept art, check out my tumblr! I occasionally create artwork for the story and concept art for the characters along with other hobbit/lotr themed artwork:  
> https://www.tumblr.com/blog/deathlikessodaandpizza


	5. Chapter 4: The Tragic Tale of the Daughter of Stars

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Minasel has a nightmare about a memory from her past and Arwen is here to help talk her through it

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter contains mention of ABUSE.  
> READER DISCRETION IS ADVISED!!!!!

_“NO! PLEASE!”  
These were the words that broke the silence in Erebor. Down the hallway stormed the fair princess of the mountain, Lady Dis. Even with her curly black hair going grey, stocky figure, stern face, and, of course, the beard, Dis remains the most beautiful dwarf in all of Middle Earth. Her bright blue eyes and beautiful gowns certainly bring out this beauty.  
Behind her, Dis dragged a young Minasel, cloaked and heavily armored. Minasel squirmed and pleaded, trying to get away from Dis. “You disrespectful girl,” Dis snarled, a tight grip on Minasel’s cloak, “how many times have I told you not to remove your cloak?”  
“I’m sorry, my lady! The hood of my cloak fell off my head during training! I didn’t mean for it to fall off!” Minasel pleaded, trying to kick away.  
“Stop these petty excuses!”  
Dis walked up to a big stone door that lay by itself in a hallway. No other doors surround it and the hall itself is relatively dark, with only a few candles lighting it. Dis called upon two guards that were walking in the hallway to open the door for her. They hesitated, but followed her orders, knowing they shouldn’t go against the angry princess. With the force of the two grown dwarven guards, they were able to pry open the large, and very heavy, stone door. A blast of cold air came from the room, causing everyone’s hair to stand on end. The room itself was barren, small, and dark, with the only light coming from a high window with metal bars on it. Dis threw Minasel into the room. For a moment, when Minasel looked up at Dis, she could see a look of regret and grief in her eyes, something that Minasel has never seen before. As the two dwarven guards closed the door, Dis uttered her last words to Minasel, “You are to stay in here until you learn your lesson.”  
The door closed leaving Minasel in the room by herself. She ran to the stone door and tried to pry it open, but it was simply too heavy. Minasel cried as she started to hit the stone door with her fists, causing her hands to bleed in the process. “PLEASE LET ME OUT!” Minasel cried out, “I’M SORRY I DISOBEYED! IT WON’T HAPPEN AGAIN! JUST PLEASE LET ME OUT!”  
_ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
Minasel jolted awake, panting heavily. She looked around, vision slightly blurred and feeling a bit dazed, not realizing where she was. Upon taking in her surroundings a little bit more, and vision clearing up, Minasel realized that she was in the Citadel library. Since given the blessing by his father, Faronion sent the two of them to the library in order to find information on the man they saw rebuilding Mordor. A few days and thousands of books later, both Faronion and Minasel found nothing. There is no information, past or present, describing the person that Faronion saw. Trying to take in her surroundings, Minasel noticed Faronion sitting beside her, faced down in an open book and sleeping. Minasel nudged Faronion, grumbling a bit, “Faronion?”  
Faronion didn’t move, letting out a loud snore so Minasel nudged him again, slightly harder this time.  
“Faronion,” Minasel said, sounding a bit more frightened, “I had the nightmare again. I really need you to wake up.”  
Sadly, to Minasel’s displeasure, Faronion did not wake up, but only shifted a bit and mumbled in his sleep. Minasel grumbled at the fact that Faronion was not conscious when she needed him the most. So, since Faronion failed her, Minasel proceeded to stumble out of the library and down the hallway. Although fully awake, Minasel still stumbled around, crashing into walls and tripping, as if her legs were made out of jelly. What made it worse was when she started seeing figures and faces. Shadowy figures with big white eyes pass Minasel in the hallway, going the opposite direction from her. The paintings on the wall seemed to move around and look at her as she passed by, which caused Minasel to pull the hood of her cloak so it covered her head more. Everything seemed to whisper at her and about her. Although in dark speech, Minasel could understand what they were saying:

  
_The Daughter of Stars. May she forever see the shadows of the dead and descent into madness. Long live the darkness.  
  
_ In fear, Minasel quickened her pace, running past paintings and through the shadowy figures, causing them to explode in a puff of black smoke. Minasel stumbled down the halls until she made it to her destination; the king and queen’s bedroom. She carefully and quietly opened the door and walked in.  
The room itself is what you would expect from the bedroom belonging to a king and queen. There's a bed, vanity, large wardrobe, and a bedside table on each side of the bed, with everything being made out of wood with amazing designs carved in them. There's a banner of the Gondor symbol that is on the wall over the bed and, on the wall across from the doorway, there is a half circle window that looks out towards the large field outside of Gondor and the mountainside. In the bed, underneath the red cotton bedding, lay the king and queen themselves, fast asleep. Minasel hesitated then shuffled over to Arwen’s side of the bed and slightly nudged her. “Lady Arwen,” Minasel whispered, “Please wake up.”  
Almost immediately, Arwen’s eyes fluttered open and turned towards the shakened girl. “Minasel?” Arwen asked, voice almost in a whisper and rubbing her eyes.  
“Yes… it’s me, my lady…” Minasel hesitated, feeling bad for waking up Arwen in the middle of the night.  
“What’s wrong, dear girl? Your voice sounds shaky, as if you saw a ghost.”  
“Sort of… I had one of those nightmares again… Faronion was not awake and I remember you saying I could go to you and-”  
“Say no more.” Arwen said softly, cutting Minasel off, and quickly got out of bed.  
Arwen took Minasel by the hand and led her down the dark hallways. Much to Minasel’s surprise, all the shadowy figures were gone and everything was back to normal. Arwen led the young girl outside to the cliffside of Gondor, which overlooked the city itself. The sky was full of stars and the only light the two had came from the moon itself. The two girls sat on the ground across from each other, leaving only a couple of inches between them. With help from the moonlight, Minasel noticed that Arwen was in a beautiful, light blue, long sleeved nightgown. She admired how the nightgown seems to shimmer in the light of the moon and even wondered if it was some sort of magic. “I thought it would be good of you to get some fresh air. You have been in that library for some time.” Arwen said, breaking Minasel from her thought process and catching her off guard.  
“Oh! Uh, yeah. Thank you.” Minasel answered, laughing a bit and rubbing the back of her head.  
“You mentioned something back in my room about nightmares?” Arwen asked.  
“Yeah, except I’m not even sure you would call it a nightmare. It was more like a memory I try to forget, but keeps coming back.”  
“What type of memories keep coming back to you?”  
“They seem to change every night, but they usually involve parts of my childhood I rather forget about. Tonight was a memory of Lady Dis throwing me in…” Minasel hesitated at this moment, but pushed through and continued talking, “... that stone room, because my hood fell off while I was training.”  
“Oh Minasel…” Arwen sighed, reaching her hand to the poor girl, allowing her to hold it.  
“Weird enough, I don’t blame Lady Dis for what she did,” Minasel said, tightly holding onto Arwen’s hand, “She was a grieving woman. She lost her brother and sons all at once, so of course she would be angry, but why, Lady Arwen? Why would she take it all out on me? Why would she do the things she did to me?”  
“Grief can cause someone to do crazy things, that includes hurting someone they are supposed to protect.” Arwen explained, holding Minasel close.  
Minasel lays her head on Arwen’s shoulder and looks up at the sky. Star gazing has always been a peaceful activity for Minasel and has always seemed to calm her down. She has even gone as far as to study the stars and constellations in the sky. Oddly enough, her parents also had an attraction for stars and anything that comes out in the night sky, so this was Minasel’s way of connecting with them. Once she calmed down, Minasel asked one last question to Arwen.  
“Was it my fault that my father died?” Minasel asked.  
“Of course not! Why would you ask such a thing?!” Arwen answered, completely in shock at Minasel’s question.  
“Well, my parents fought in the Battle of the Five Armies and my mother was pregnant with me. My father ended up dying trying to protect my mother. So, in a way, I feel like I am also at fault for his death.”  
“Minasel,” Arwen sighed, standing up with the young captain, “your father’s death was not your fault. Nor was it your mother’s fault. Your father sacrificed himself in order to protect his king and his kingdom. Whether anybody knows it or not, that was an important step in taking back the mountain.”  
“So, my father did not die in vain?” Minasel asked.  
“Exactly.” Arwen answered, then shivered at the frigid breeze that blew past her, “The midnight air has grown quite cold, I better get inside. You should probably get to bed as well.”  
“You can go back inside without me. I want to spend time with the stars a little while longer.”  
“Alright, if you say so. Goodnight Minasel.”  
“Goodnight Lady Arwen.”  
With a bow, Arwen walked back to her room, while Minasel spent the rest of the night looking at the night sky and talking to the stars.


	6. Chapter 5: Morning at Gondor

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's morning at Gondor and Faronion finally leaves the library

Faronion woke up to the sound of his siblings, yelling at the top of their lungs. Faronion slowly opened his eyes and carefully lifted up his head, causing a page of a book he was sleeping on to peel off his cheek. He looked over and noticed that Minasel was not beside him and thought that she must have woken up before him, and left without trying to wake him. So, Faronion walked out of the library by himself and was immediately greeted by the blinding light of early morning. Since he was in the library, a place with no windows in sight, for a long time, the rays of the light stung his eyes. Faronion was immediately caught off guard as his siblings ran by him. With a wooden sword in hand, Eldarion led the way, while Aerloth followed close behind, holding Celebsîr in her arms. A moment later and Arwen ran behind them, seeming as if she was chasing after them. She stopped in front of Faronion hunched over and trying to catch her breath, before standing up straight and turning towards him with a tired look on her face. “Good morning, Faronion.” Arwen said, her voice quiet and calm.  
“Good morning, mother,” Faronion answered back, then turned towards where his siblings ran off to, “What was that all about?”  
“The children? Oh, well, Eldarion is trying to start a ‘revolution’ and he has gotten Aerloth to accompany him. Of course, they decided to get the baby involved.”  
“Why would he do that?”  
“He mentioned something about how it is practice for when he becomes king. Anyway, breakfast will be finished in ten and I believe it would be good for you to get an actual meal instead of eating small portions that you can bring into the library.”  
“Yes, I promise to be at breakfast.”  
With a satisfied nod, Arwen ran off to where her other children were going. Faronion shook his head and made his way down the hallways towards the dining hall. What Eldarion did really stuck in his mind, he thought it was all around idiotic and immature. Faronion felt as if he had the right to think this way since he was originally set to be given the throne and so was taught lessons about how to run a kingdom and build up a hierarchy. He was given these lessons until a fateful day, when he was only 8 years old.  
Faronion was walking around the halls with his father, trying to copy his movements and take notes. That was until he saw her; Minasel, Captain of the Erebor Guards. He remembered watching her train and instructing the other guards. He remembered his first in person encounter with her, how she kneeled down in front of him and talked to him with encouraging words. That moment Faronion knew that he wanted to be captain of Gondor’s guards. He smiled at the happy memory that came flowing back, but was quickly brought back to reality by a familiar voice coming from behind him.  
Faronion turned around and saw Aragorn and Minasel walking down the hall towards him. Aragorn was strutting down the hallway, slouching and with an annoyed look on his face. Minasel, on the other hand, followed close behind Aragorn and bounced around. She had a gleeful, yet mischievous look on her face as she seems to be trying to get a reaction out of Aragorn. Faronion slowed down his pace until he was walking side by side with Minasel, able to hear what she is annoying Aragorn with. “Father figure!” Minasel sang, skipping behind Aragorn, “Hey father figure!”  
“Good morning, Minasel,” Faronion said, interrupting the Erebor captain.  
“Oh, good morning, Faronion,” Minasel answered, now walking normally, causing Aragorn to sigh in relief.  
“Is this why you are up before me? To annoy my father?”  
“ Of course not,” Minasel gasped, dramatically, “I’ll have you know that I do this as the sincerest form of flattery, love, and affection. Isn’t that right, father figure?~”  
Aragorn grumbled something incoherent and walked away from the two captains, quickly, which caused Minasel to laugh.  
“But to answer your first question,” Minasel said, calming down from laughter, “I have been up since last night.”  
“Been up since last night? Are you okay?” Faronion asked, stopping dead in his tracks, which caused Minasel to stop as well.  
“I had nightmares again. I couldn’t go back to sleep.”  
“Why didn’t you wake me up, Minas? I could have helped ease your mind off it.” Faronion asked, holding Minasel’s hand and sounding hurt that she didn’t go to him.  
“Don’t you think I would have gone to you immediately about these types of issues, Faron? You know I always do, you are my closest friend .” Minasel scoffed, yet patted his hand a couple of times in reassurance.  
“Then why didn’t you this time?”  
“It’s not my fault that you are a heavy sleeper. The entirety of Middle Earth could be collapsing around us and you would be sleeping like a baby.”  
Faronion mumbled swears, while Minasel laughed at him. The two captains soon arrived at the dinning hall and walked in. Sitting at the head of the table was Aragorn, with Arwen beside him on the right side of the table, and the children sat close to their mother, side by side, except for Celebsîr, who was laying in Arwen’s arms. Minasel and Faronion sat on the other side of the table, with Faronion being close to Aragorn. The minute they sat down was when the citadel chef came out, with his apprentices, and gave the family their meal. Everyone got the same thing; a plate of bacon, eggs, cooked ham, and a side of mixed berries. They ate their meal in silence, with the only noises coming from the Eldarion and Aerloth, who were playing with their food. Finally, Aragorn spoke up, turning towards Minasel and Faronion, “So, how is your search going?”  
“It’s awful,” Faronion groaned, slamming his fists on the table, “We can’t find anything!”  
“Faronion, don’t hit the table.” Arwen warned Faronion, causing him to slouch back into his chair.  
“You would think that finding an elf that looked and acted like him would be easy. As if he was an old war captain or memorable servant of the Dark Lord, but we looked through that entire library and found nothing.” Faronion grumbled, arms crossed.  
“Maybe he was just a lowly elf. There is always that possibility.” Aragorn mentioned.  
“We hope not.” Minasel spoke up, but her voice was mostly muffled by all the food she had stuffed in her mouth.  
“Yeah…” Faronion glanced at Minasel then looked back to Aragorn, “It would be harder for us if he was just some unnamed elf. We would have to actually walk into Mordor, while they are rebuilding, and be totally oblivious to if this guy has any strengths or weaknesses. If he is a deadly threat and we do not have the right army, many innocent lives will be lost including our own.”  
“Well, I trust that you two will not let that happen.” Aragorn said, and Faronion nodded in agreement.  
“You have not told me anything about this elf you are looking for, Faronion. What makes you think he is so special?” Arwen asked, cradling the tiny baby in her arms.  
“He looks like every other elf, but what I found interesting is that he had red eyes, and blonde and red hair. I have never seen an elf with anything like that before.” Faronion explained, which caused Arwen’s eyes to light up in realization.  
“Honey, why didn’t you tell me this in the first place? I know someone who looks exactly like who you are looking for.”  
“Really? Who?” Faronion asked, his heart now racing with excitement.  
“He was a close servant of your grandfather in Rivendell. Although I do not remember much of what he did, I do remember what he looked like and his name. He went by the name Agarhend.”  
“Why did you not tell us this sooner?!”  
“Well excuse me, but you never ask.” Arwen said, almost scowling at her son, “Just because I was raised as an elven princess and have never been a part of any great battles like your father has, does not mean I am foreign to what you talk about with him.”  
“Sorry mother,” Faronion apologized, hanging his head down, but quickly looked up at Arwen and asked, “Is there anything else about this elf that you can tell us?”  
“There is not much that I remember, I was fairly young when he was around, but I do remember him leaving due to mysterious circumstances. Oh, he also owned a diary that was tucked away in Rivendell’s library. Your grandfather hid it away, making sure nobody got their hands on it.”  
“Do you think that diary is still there?”  
“None of the books were moved from that library when elves were leaving Rivendell, so I believe that it still should be there. It’s a big library, so you just might have to do some searching.”  
“Perfect! Minasel, pack your things. We will ride to Rivendell as soon as possible.” Faronion declared then strutted out of the dining hall.  
Minasel mumbles and looks down at her food, “And with that, Minasel spends the rest of her miserable life in libraries. Brilliant, absolutely brilliant.”  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
Once all packed up, Minasel and Faronion went to the gates of Gondor, where they said their goodbyes to Arwen, Aragorn, and the children. Out of all of them, Arwen made the biggest fuss and checked over the two captains multiple times to see if they are prepared.  
“You have your weapons?” Arwen asked.  
“We never leave without them.” Faronion groaned in response.  
“You are wearing good armor?”  
“Of course, mother. The blacksmith made it special.”  
“Are you sure you will be warm enough? You know the mountains are very cold.”  
“Yes, mother, our cloaks will help keep us warm.”  
“I made sure to pack some food for you two since you might be gone for a while and might not have access to resources.”  
“Mother, you don’t have to do that. We will be-”  
“Thank you, Lady Arwen! You are right, we might NOT have access to resources.” Minasel jumped into the conversation, and put her hand over Faronion’s mouth in order to shut him up.  
Arwen nodded and smiled, happy with that answer. Aragorn walked up holding the reins to a large brown horse. This horse belongs to Faronion and was graciously given the name Cyng. The horse has a black mane, brushed smoothed, and is adorned with a dark blue saddle. Both Faronion and Minasel climbed onto the horse, with Faronion at the front, holding the reins, and Minasel sitting behind him. Aragorn looked up at his son and said his final words before the two captains departed, “Be careful out there, my son. The world is becoming increasingly more dangerous and now you need to be careful where you go. Make sure you come back alive.”  
Faronion gave a serious nod to Aragorn before riding off through the open gates and across the open field. He could hear his siblings yell their goodbyes at him, but he did not look behind him in fear that he would change his mind and turn around. Finally, he and Minasel reached a point where they couldn’t hear the children anymore. This was when Faronion knew that there was no turning back on his adventure.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Cyng is old English for 'King'. I thought it would be an appropriate name for Faronion's horse.


	7. Chapter 6: The Fallen City of Rivendell

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Faronion and Minasel arrive in Rivendell to search for the diary belonging to Agarhend, but they might find even more

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wrote this while suffering from a headache. Hope you all still enjoy it.  
> Also, I am back at school so uploads may not be as frequent, but I will try.

There was not much to say about Faronion and Minasel's ride to Rivendell. The two captains thought for sure they would spot more orcs and would have to battle with them, which could delay their trip, but, to their surprise, there was no orc in sight. This seemed a little suspicious when Faronion and Minasel thought about it, but they decided not to look into it, knowing that they need to get to Rivendell as soon as possible and find the diary of the new enemy that has appeared in Middle Earth. 

Faronion is a great and fast rider, just like his mother, and because of this they arrived in Rivendell only a couple of days after they left Gondor. The two captains got off the horse, Cyng, at the entrance of Rivendell and looked at the once great elven city. After all the elves left for the Gray Havens, the grounds became abandoned. Plants grew everywhere, including in the cracks of stone roads. Buildings were crumbling away and vines grew around the buildings that were still standing. The light that once filled the city, making it look gold and beautiful, has left, creating an eerie atmosphere. 

Cyng neighed and backed away at the sight and feel of Rivendell, which caught Faronion’s attention and caused him to run to his horse. Minasel slowly made her way into the city, while Faronion was stroking the mane of his horse, trying to calm him down. “Minasel,” Faronion shouted at his friend, “Wait a moment.”

Faronion turned back to Cyng and sighed, “I’m going to go in.”

Cyng made a dissatisfied noise and nudged Faronion with his head.

“I promise. I’ll be back before you know it.” Faronion kissed Cyng on the nose and ran into Rivendell to catch up with Minasel.

Minasel stands in the middle of all the wreckage and fulliage of Rivendell. “This makes me sad,” Minasel sighed, looking at some of the statues that are now chipping away and covered in vines, “the light of this place is gone now.”

Faronion nods, “Yes, it has not been present here in years.”

“I was here, you know.” Minasel began, looking back at Faronion, “When Lord Elrond ruled this place. When it was full of life.”

“Yes, I remember you mentioning it.”

Minasel danced and spun around Rivendell, pointing at different ruined places, “The towers stood high up, each full of elves. When you walk upon the roads, you swore you are walking on gold, because of how the sun would hit them. Music filled the air. Oh Faronion, the music was beautiful with the loots, flutes, and harps. Every elf was so hospitable and nice, especially Lord Elrond. He did not care who you were. Whether you were well known or not, and no matter what race you were. Elf, human, dwarf, or even…”

Minasel stopped in her tracks and became silent. She then smiled at a memory from long ago, “...Even someone like me. He accepted all.”

“My grandfather seems very honorable…” Faronion mentioned, thinking about all the stories he was told about his grandfather, Elrond. 

“Aye… he was…” Minasel said in a monotone voice, but quickly shook her head, clapped her hands together twice, and continued to walk, “But now is not the time to think of what we lost! We must find that diary!”

Minasel and Faronion walked down the stone path until they reached the library. Like most of the buildings in Rivendell, there were no doors so the two captains were able to simply walk in. There were two levels to the library that they could see. The first level, which Faronion and Minasel were on, only had a stone canopy with an open roof, benches around the canopy, a couple of stone tables scattered around with matching chairs, a couple of large pots that carry dirty and shriveled plants, and a set of stairs leading up to the second level. This level was exactly what Faronion and Minasel were looking for, because the walls were covered in bookshelves filled with books, which circled around the second level. The book shelves are very tall, reaching up to the ceiling, and there is a tall wooden ladder to assist in reaching the books on higher shelves.

Faronion and Minasel began their search, working on opposite shelves from the other. The books were not labeled, so they each had to take a book out, dust it off, and read through to see if it was the diary. They did this for a couple of hours, in silence, but had no luck finding the diary. In frustration, Faronion groaned and punched the side of one of the bookshelves, which caused a couple of books to topple onto the floor. The sound of the books was so loud, that it caused Minasel to jump and turn towards Faronion. “Mahal, Faron.” Minasel gasped, “Warn me next time you decide to take your anger out on ancient elven artifacts.”

“Sorry,” Faronion grumbled, “This is just driving me insane! The least these elves could have done was label their books! It’s like they don’t want us to find this damned diary!”

“Maybe not, but we can’t give up hope.”

Faronion nods in agreement and picks up one of the books that fell. He opens it up and immediately groans, “ANOTHER book about plants! Why do elves have an unhealthy obsession with nature?”

Minasel laughs at Faronion’s comment which causes him to glare at her. Faronion goes to put the book away, but suddenly stops when he notices something towards the back of the shelf. He reaches back there and pulls out a small, red journal. He opens it up to the front page and is greeted by the words, written in cursive, “ _By. Bilbo Baggins_ ”. Faronion looks through the first couple of pages and smiles. He turns to Minasel, “Hey Minas, come over here.”

Minasel puts down a book she was looking at and walks over to Faronion, “Did you find something?”

“Somewhat. This isn’t Agarhend’s diary, if that's what you are wondering.”

“Then what is it?”

“I believe this is ‘There and Back Again: A Hobbit’s Tale’.”

With no hesitation, Minasel took the small journal out of Faronion’s hand and began looking through it. Her face immediately lit up and she scanned each page. Minasel looked over at Faronion and held up her pointer finger, “We can take a small break.” 

Faronion smiled and the two ran down the stairs to the first level. Faronion sat down on a bench and Minasel stood in front of him, holding the journal open. “Let’s see,” Minasel said looking through the pages, “Ah! I got it! Since we are in the house of Elrond, let's read the part where the dwarves arrive in Rivendell!”

“Sounds good to me.”

Minasel began reading, “ _Elrond walked down a path, talking to Lindir._ _They weren’t quite sure what to think of their dwarven guests and how long their visit will be. That was when they saw it…_ ”

Minasel hesitated and narrowed her eyes at the journal, “ _... the dwarves were swimming in the fountain…naked..._ ”

Faronion looked at Minasel, head cocked to the side, “I don’t remember that in the original story.”

Minasel shakes her head, “I don’t either…”

Minasel flips for more pages and reads more unusual lines that seemed unfamiliar to her, “ _... Radagast comes in riding a sled of rabbits… Bofur stands on the dining table and sings to the unhappy dwarves… An elf named Legolas Greenleaf captures the dwarves?!_ ”

Faronion stares at Minasel as she frantically looks through all the pages. She suddenly stops and her eyes widen at the page she is on. Minasel says, almost in a whisper, “ _... An elf named Tauriel…_ ”

Minasel holds the journal close, tears filling her eyes. She quickly turns to Faronion and smiles, “You know what this is?”

Faronion shakes his head, “No. Are you okay?”

Minasel gives Faronion a big smile, “These are parts that were taken out from the original story.”

Minasel looks down and smiles at the pages, as she flips through all the pages, “See, the dwarves are described differently here… and Azog is here… and…”

Minasel’s words get caught in her mouth as she stops at one of the pages. Tears begin to stream down her face, the more she looks at the page. Faronion goes behind her and looks over her shoulder. On the page, Faronion can see the word that Minasel has her eyes on. ‘ _Amralime_ ’, a dwarvish word meaning ‘ _my love_ ’. On closer examination, Faronion can read that this word is said by the dwarf, Kili, to the elf by the name of Tauriel. Minasel closes the journal quickly and wipes away the tears from her eyes. “We should probably put this back…” Minasel says, walking towards the stairs to put the journal away. 

Faronion quickly grabs Minasel’s wrist, stopping her. Minasel looks Faronion in the eye, surprised at his sudden action. “I think you should keep it.” Faronion said, in a serious tone of voice.

“Why?” Minasel asked.

“Because this isn’t just some random story told to children, this is your history. This shows how you came to be and that is important! This journal explains the truth behind the trip to Erebor and everyone should know what happened. What REALLY happened.”

Minasel looked at Faronion and smiled. She put the journal safely under her chest plate and hugged Faronion with a great amount of force. Faronion stumbled and knocked over one of the dead potted plants. The pot was shattered once it fell to the floor, creating a very loud noise that rang through the library. Minasel and Faronion hesitated and looked over at the now destroyed pot. Dirt was scattered all over the floor, along with pieces from the pot and dead leaves that came from the shriveled plant. Faronion immediately ran over the destroyed pot and started to try and pick it up. Minasel sighed and crossed her arms, “I don’t think there is any use in trying to clean it up.”

Faronion nods, picking up pieces of the pot, “I know, but I still want to make this place as nice as possible. This is the house of my grandfather, after all.”

Minasel smiles at Faronion’s small gesture and helps him pick up the mess they made. Once they pick up the shards of the pot and dispose of them, Faronion and Minasel begin to try and pick up the dirt. They went on their knees and started picking up handfuls of dirt and walked to the library entrance to throw the dirt outside. They did this a few times until Faronion stopped. When picking up some dirt, he felt something smooth brush against his hand. Suspicious, Faronion reaches down in the dirt and grabs a hold of something thin and square. He pulled it out and, to his surprise, it was a small black journal. He brushes the dirt off the cover and opens it to the front page, which reads, ‘ _Property of Agarhend_ ’. 

Faronion’s eyes widened, surprised to see the diary, “Minasel! I found it!”

“What?” Minasel asked, running over to him.

“I found the diary! It was in the pot!”

“Elrond must have really wanted to keep it hidden.”

Faronion nods and turns to the first entry in the diary, “Alright Agarhend. Who exactly are you?”

  
  



	8. Chapter 7: The Diary of Agarhend

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> These are the entries found in Agarhend's diary.

_T.A. 50_

_My dear diary,_

_I must recount to you about what has happened to my life, for it has changed for the good. My name is Agarhend and I was supposed to die today. A group of bandits attacked me and tried to steal my gold which I had none. “Give me your gold and silver!” They yelled at me. “I’m sorry, dear bandits, but I am poor and own no gold” I tried to explain to them. Alas, they thought I was lying, but I would never lie!_

_When I thought my head was going to be chopped clean off my neck, that’s when I saw him. My savior. Lord Elrond. He defended me and killed those nasty bandits. On top of his noble steed, he looked like a TRUE member of the Valar. Then he talked to me. I, Agarhend, of all elves was being spoken to by Lord Elrond!_

_“Are you alright?” He asked me. I hesitated, trembling at the godly figure, but I answered, “I am fine. Those bandits thought I was lying when I said I had no gold, but I would never lie!”_

_Elrond laughed and offered to walk me back to my home. We walked and talked, it felt amazing. Lord Elrond is incredible._

_Then he spoke these words, these words filled me with such joy, “Young elf, I know that you have no gold to spare, but I see such potential in you. So would you like to work under me?”_

_I was joyus! Of course I would work for him! What type of question is that?!_

_Tomorrow starts my first day working under the Lord Elrond, himself. He is my savior and I promise to make sure he is treated well._

_Sincerely,_

_Agarhend, Servant is Elrond_

  
  


_T.A. 60_

_Dearest Diary,_

_Today marks ten years since my savior has saved me and I became his apprentice. Oh what joyous years these were. I walk in the shadow of my Lord, but I don’t mind. To be at his side everyday is enough for me. We talk for hours and walk long roads, oh how I cherish every moment I spend with him. Although I do have one issue._

_These other elves that work for him are not good enough for his lordship! He deserves better than those buffoons. They do not praise him every day like they are supposed to! How dare they. These elves need to learn about the greatness of Lord Elrond._

_With much care,_

_Agarhend, Servant of Elrond_

  
  


_T.A. 80_

_My Dear Diary,_

_It has come to my attention that there are plenty of secrets that the dark lord must never learn about. As I was searching with my Lord Elrond, we found an incantation that will build up an army. The incantation is long and also requires a mixture of interesting ingredients. This may sound good for us, but there is one problem. The army that is built up is already dead and they seem to have evil intentions. Lord Elrond does not like this for it can lead to more power for the dark lord. You see, with this incantation, the dark lord could bring back something very powerful and very dangerous. I will leave the recipe in my diary to keep it safe. My Lord Elrond agrees, no one would suspect a servant’s diary._

_Keep it secret,_

_Agarhend, Servant of Elrond_

  
  


_T.A. 100_

_Oh sweet diary,_

_I cannot stop thinking about my Lord Elrond! He is so astounding and powerful! Why can’t he be ruler of Middle Earth? He would certainly make a good ruler! Oh do I wish that he would stop bringing meer peasants into his life. Especially that daughter of Lady Galadriel and Celeborn, Celebrían. Although, I admit, she is very beautiful and I see why Lord Elrond admires her, she is hardly a fit for him!_

_Nasty girl! She is not meant to be with a Lord such as Elrond! She is a heinous woman! Absolutely heinous! I wish I could open Lord Elrond’s eyes to see that! Damn that wench!_

_Till we speak again,_

_Agarhend, Servant of Elrond_

  
  


_T.A. 109_

_My poor diary,_

_It has happened. No matter what I tried or what I said to my Lord Elrond, it has happened. HE MARRIED THAT WENCH, CELEBRÍAN!_

_This is indeed a sad day. I must lock myself in my room and wait for this nightmare to be over. Tell me this is a nightmare_

_Broken-hearted,_

_Agarhend, Servant of Elrond_

  
  


_T.A. 120_

_My dear abandoned diary,_

_Sorry I have not written to you for awhile. My heart still is shattered from my Lord Elrond’s choice. No matter what I do, I can’t seem to split them up. Although, I have been occupying myself with something else._

_You know that incantationI hid in you? The dangerous incantation that shouldn’t be put in the hands of the dark lord? Well, I’ve been studying it and found more information about it. Yes, it will build up a dark army, but it does so much more. I studied for hours and found out, with the right ingredients, it can even bring powerful warlords back from the dead. Warlords that led an awful army back in their day, but were stopped by the good in the world._

_There’s just one sacrifice that must be made. To bring back an evil soul, a pure soul must also come with it. The way I understand it is that, if I were to bring back an evil warlord, I would also have to bring back the hero that stopped them._

_What an interesting discovery! I must tell Lord Elrond right away! He will be very proud of me!_

_Wish me luck,_

_Agarhend, Servant of Elrond_

  
  


_T.A. 130_

_Dearest diary,_

_Another tragic day has arrived. That wench Celebrían gave birth to two boys, Elladan and Elrohir. Praise that they do not look like her, but they are hers nonetheless. I hate them. I hate these spawns of Celebrían, but I must be nice to them. I do not want to disappoint my lord. My Lord Elrond might find the errors of his way if I continue to praise him and give him all the recognition he deserves._

_Praise be to Lord Elrond,_

_Agarhend, Servant of Elrond_

  
  


_T.A. 160_

_DAMN THESE ELVES. DAMN ALL THESE ELVES WHO THINK THEY CAN FOLLOW AROUND NEAR LORD ELROND. THEY ARE NOT WORTHY! NONE OF THEM ARE! THEY ALL NEED TO DIE! DIE. DIE. DIE_

  
  


_T.A. 200_

_Greetings diary,_

_I do not understand. Why is everyone scared of me? Everywhere I walk, elves tremble are the sight of me. Is it because I scream when angry? Is it because I hurt some elves when I see they are unworthy to be near Lord Elrond?_

_Is it weird that I kind of enjoy it?_

_The only ones that don’t flee at the sight of me are Elladan and Elrohir. They treat me with much kindness and bring me sweets. Charming lads. Too bad they belong to Celebrían. I still hate her so much, no matter how nice she is to me. Lord Elrond deserves much better. He needs to be on a high throne looking over everyone! He needs to be praised as the god he is!_

_All hail Lord Elrond,_

_Agarhend, Servant of Elrond_

  
  


_T.A. 220_

_Dearest Diary,_

_Lord Elrond is worried about me. He sees that the other elves are scared of me and he is concerned. He asks that I try to make myself more approachable to the other elves. Of course, my Lord is always right, so I started to dress up a little more._

_I absolutely love to dress up in beautiful gowns and extraordinary armor. Elves all over admire my sense of taste. I even went all out and decorated my room with glittering decorations. I never realized how dated and disgusting my room looked before. I have even caught the eye of Lord Elrond! He is impressed at my skills and is very proud of me! I am filled with joy again!_

_Life is good,_

_Agarhend, Servant of Elrond_

  
  


_T.A. 241_

_Dear Diary,_

_It is in my disappointment to announce that Elrond and Celebrían had another child, a girl, named Arwen. I am only happy that she looks like her father. Celebrían should not have a child that looks like herself. That would be a nightmare!_

_Again, I must stay kind to this child, for it is to please my Lord Elrond_

_Till we meet again,_

_Agarhend, Servant of Elrond_

  
  


_T.A. 250_

_Despicable Diary,_

_These children are driving me insane! They will not leave me alone! They always mess with my work or beg me to come play with them! But I must keep calm, for that is the wish of my Lord._

_The two boys still bring me food, but the littlest, Arwen, likes to bring me flowers. They work well with my potions. I just wish they would give me a moment's peace._

_Very tired,_

_Agarhend, Servant of Elrond_

  
  


_T.A. 300_

_DAMN THESE ELVES WITH HOW THEY SPEAK TO LORD ELROND. THEY DO NOT DESERVE TO SPEAK WITH HIM. HE IS HIGHER THAN THEY WOULD EVER BE._

_AND DAMN THESE ELVES WHO BELIEVE THEY CAN SPEAK TO ME AND VISIT ME. I WISH THEY WOULD ALL JUST DIE!_

_DIE_

_DIE_

_DIE_

_~~~~~~~_

_Diary,_

_I messed up. I messed up big time. During my fit of rage, a young elf lad came in to deliver a message to me, but he hardly said a word before I stabbed him with my dagger. I stabbed him 40 times before I realized what I was doing. He was just a boy. What will all the other elves think? What will Lord Elrond think? What have I done?! I’m sorry. I’m so sorry_

_I’m sorry,_

_Agarhend, Servant of Elrond_

_~~~~~~~_

_Diary,_

_It is a day later. Lord Elrond found out what I did and banished me from Rivendell. The elf I saw as my savior, as my lord, says I’m a danger to him, his family, and other elves and I need to leave. I thought I was his family._

_My hope is not lost though, for I had a dream. A dream of Mordor and the dark lord who has been waiting for me. He spoke in such kind words and said he would give me the place I deserved. I must go as soon as possible and sit on a throne beside the dark lord. He will cherish me like Lord Elrond never did. Goodbye my Lord Elrond, I have always worshiped you, but you betrayed me and for that I will never forgive you for. I must go on to a better lord._

_Goodbye forever,_

_Agarhend, Servant of Sauron_

_~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~_

“Oh mahal.” Minasel said, right after they read the last excerpt from the diary. 

Faronion closed the diary, eye wide in shock. His hands were shaking slightly and he held the diary close. He looked at Minasel and finally spoke, “This elf is insane.” 

Minasel nods and stands up, “We need to leave right now and warn the kingdoms. We need to rally an army and stop him.” 

Faronion stoods up and the two went to run to the doorway, but they were stopped by a large group of orc soldiers. Faronion clutched the diary as Minasel blocked Faronion from the orcs. Suddenly a tall, blonde and red haired elf with black spiked armor and a black spiked crown walks through the orc army and approaches the two captains. It was Agarhend. He laughed and placed his hands on his hips, “Well well well, isn’t this a pleasant surprise?” 

Agarhend gasped and snatched the diary away from Faronion, “Oh, and I see you found my diary. What a tragic tale. A poor elven boy being disowned by the only person that has ever shown him respect.” 

Agarhend whimpers and places the back of his hand on his forehead, acting as if he was crying. His fake cries turn into laughter as he paces around the two captains. “When I first saw this little boy peeking over the gate,” Agarhend began to explain, his blood red eyes targeted on Faronion, “I wondered, ‘I wonder who that could be, maybe he is someone important and I should follow him’. Oh, and was I glad that I did because I figured out that you are Arwen’s son. That means you are Lord Elrond’s grandson.” 

His smile turns sinister and he pulled back his hand, “and Celebrían’s GRANDSON!” 

Agarhend went to grab Faronion by the throat, but was quickly stopped by Minasel. She grabbed Agarhend’s arm and started to pull it back. Agarhend looked at Minasel surprised and then laughed at her efforts, “Aren’t you a feisty one?” 

Agarhend used his other hand and grabbed Minasel’s hood and pulled it off, “Let me have a good look at you.” 

Minasel stood frozen, her features now clearly seen. She had dark red, short hair that is parted to the right side and is very thick and messy. Her hair has a single braid to the back that has two beads, one green and one blue, and a silver clasp. Her eyes are big and dark brown, and she has dark, stern eyebrows. The most noticeable feature, however, are her ears, which are big and pointed at the tips.

Minasel froze up and loosened her grip, which gave Agarhend enough power to throw Minasel against one of the walls in the library. The wall hit her back and she fell to the ground, as the orcs and Agarhend laughed at her. “A weak little half breed, aren’t you darling?” Agarhend laughed, bringing out his black bladed sword and pointing it at Minasel. 

Faronion immediately ran to Minasel and kneeled down at her side. Minasel looked up at him then they both looked at Agarhend, who was approaching them with his band of orcs. Faronion quickly brought Minasel on her feet and they ran out of the library. Agarhend yelled at his orc army, “AFTER THEM! I WANT THEM BOTH DEAD! KILL THEM!” 

The orcs ran after the two captains, all around the ruined parts of Rivendell, with Agarhend strutting close behind. Minasel brought out her bow and arrow and started shooting orcs. She would get an arrow ready then spin around, shooting the arrow at an orcs head, then would keep running. Faronion would grab rubble from the ruined buildings and would throw the rubble at the orcs. They were able to take down some of the orcs before reaching a dead end. A mountain blocks the path forward with a waterfall rushing to the right of them off the top of the mountain. There is also a wall on their left and a cliff on their right. Faronion, who was closer to the cliff, looks over it. The drop is very far, and almost impossible to see, but he was able to see an outline of what looked like a pond. 

Minasel and Faronion turned around and were immediately greeted by the army of orcs, with their weapons pointed at them. Agarhend pushes through the band of orcs, an evil grin on his face. He pulls out his sword again and points it at the two captains, “Any last words?” 

Faronion looked over at Agarhend, then over the cliff, and then back at Agarhend. Faronion quickly grabs Minasel and pulls her with him as he jumps off the cliff. Minasel screams could be heard all the way down until a loud ‘Splash’ was heard. 

Agarhend groans and turns to his army, “Those little RATS! They won’t get away from me that easily! FIND THEM!” 

One of the orcs spoke up, “But my lord, they fell an awful long way. They couldn’t have possibly survived that fall.” 

“I won’t be convinced until I see their lifeless bodies myself! GO FIND THEM AND MAKE SURE THEY ARE DEAD!”

The orcs groaned in agreement and ran off with Agarhend as the sound of the rushing waterfall filled the air. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know I said it might take awhile for a new part to come up, but I was bored and started writing and couldn't stop!


	9. Chapter 8: Caves and Braids

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Minasel and Faronion hide out in the abandoned Mines of Moria and, there, Minasel discusses the meaning of braids in dwarvish culture.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Writing has been a bit slow, since I started school, but I am trying my best to write as much as possible. I hope you like this chapter and please let me know what you think!

From the very bottom of the waterfall, where the pond loomed in the upcoming night, all was still. Suddenly, bubbles emerged from the waters and Faronion popped out, gasping for air. Faronion was completely soaked, his hood was down and every ounce of clothing seemed to be sticking to him. When he stood up, the water swirled and rippled around his abdomen. He patted his body, panting heavily and eyes widened. “I’m alive?” Faronion asked, then started laughing, “I’m alive! Blessed be the Valar for keeping me alive!” 

At this moment, Minsel slowly emerged from the water. She was a bit further in the water than Faronion was, even though she was standing right beside him. She was also completely soaked, with her hood down and hair wet and in her face. Even with her hair covering her expression, when looking at her, Faronion could tell that Minasel was very mad. He did pull her off a cliff without warning her and without certainty if they would make it or not. “You didn’t know if we would survive?!” Minasel growled at Faronion angrily. 

“In my defense, there was probably no other way out of that situation.” Faronion said, moving the hair out of Minasel’s face, revealing her displeased expression. 

“I could strangle you, Faronion!” Minasel sneered, with teeth clenched and brought up her hands and squeezed them in front of Faronion’s throat. 

Suddenly, the howl of wargs could be heard off in the distance. Faronion grabbed Minasel by the wrist and started running, “You can kill me later, but right now we need to hide.” 

Faronion and Minasel ran around the area, looking for somewhere to go and hide, but there was none. Of course there was a forest of trees, but those could only hide them for so long. Faronion could call his horse, but the whistle would be loud enough that the orcs and Agarhend could hear him and they would be caught. Minasel looked around then her eyes locked onto a mountain, the misty mountains to be exact. There, the high pass was located, but also the Mines of Moria. That was when Minasel had an idea, a risky idea, but if it worked it could save their skins. She quickly grabbed Faronion and started running, “This way! I know a shortcut!”

On paths and over hills the two ran, looking behind them to see if the orcs and their wargs were nearby. Finally, Minasel and Faronion made it to a doorway that has inscriptions of elvish written all around it. However, the doorway was blocked with many rocks and boulders. Faronion groaned, “So this is your so called ‘shortcut’.”

“Shut up and help me!” Minasel has climbed onto the boulders and started pushing them inward. 

With one big push, one of the boulders fell and created a slight opening. Faronion could see what she was doing and started helping her push rocks into the doorway. Suddenly, a warg howl signaled to the two captains that Agarhend and his army were close by. They have created a small opening towards the top, big enough for the captains to wiggle through. Minasel went through it first, disappearing in the darkness that enveloped the mines. Faronion then climbed up on the rocks, but stopped when he looked into the darkened area. It was pitch black for starters, even with the little light coming from outside, he could see nothing. Cool air blew from the opening causing Faronion to shiver. Once the air blew past his ear, he could hear whispers, although he could not understand what they were saying, but he knew it was probably in some sort of tongue. Something did not feel right about this place, it almost felt sinister. Suddenly a hand came out from the darkness and pulled him in. He fell down a hill of rock and then face down on the floor. He could not see her, but he could hear Minasel’s scolding voice, “You idiot, we are being hunted! You can’t just take your damn time!” 

He looked up and could see the light coming from the other side of the hole they went through, but slowly it was starting to fade away. He can hear Minsel heaving rocks over the opening until it completely fanished and they were left in complete darkness. 

Faronion stood and looked around, but could not see anything, not even an outline. He couldn’t even see his own feet or hands. Suddenly, he bumped into something. He could tell it was Minasel by the tone in her voice and the way how she punched him in the arm. “Watch it!” Minasel growled.

“Can’t really do that if I can’t see anything!” Faronion growled back.

“Okay, okay. I’m sorry. We should just try to find a way to bring some light in here.”

“Agree.” 

To make sure they did not bump into each other, Faronion and Minasel turned their backs to each other and started walking separate ways, slowly and with arms outstretched and waving around. After some time, Faronion felt his foot hit something. It clanked on the floor and rolled a bit forward. Faronion went on his hands and knees and felt around for that thing that his foot kicked. Finally he found it and picked it up. Whatever the thing was, it was light and he was able to hold it like he would his sword. Faronion took off his glove and felt the outer lawyer which was rough and bit bumpy. He was able to conclude that it was a stick! Faronion felt over joyed, because he knew he would be able to make a torch out of it.

Faronion is very good with fire, this was a talent he learned from his father. It started off with him easily making campfires and torches, but then as he grew up, so did his talent. Faronion became really good at making explosions. Not just petty explosions that you light and then they go off, but also intricate explosions that take planning and precision. With his skill, Faronion can make the biggest fires and the biggest explosions. He still remembers the day his father gifted him with his favorite tinderbox. 

Faronions felt around under his suit of armor then pulled out something that was box shaped, metal, and had a sliding lid. This must be his tinder box! He sat down on the ground and went to work. Even in complete darkness, Faronion was able to move around and pick up things that he needed. After quite some time preparing the torch, he held it at the bottom and set it on fire. It worked! He was able to see everything in front of him. Faronion held the torch as he packed up his kit and stuffed it back under his armor. At this moment, Minasel comes running to him and appears right beside him out of the darkness. “You made a torch.” Minasel pointed out. 

“Yes I did,” Faronion answered back, “Now we can find our way out of these mines.”

“That’s good. It might take us awhile to search for it, but I know that there is an opening at the very end of these mines.”

“Alright, sounds fair.”

Faronion and Minasel started walking through the mines, walking down corridors and looking into rooms. “What gave you the idea to come in here, Minasel?” Faronion asked, lighting the way with his torch.

“Well, I just remembered the stories of your father.” Minasel answered, causing Faronion to look at her confused.

“My father?”

“Yeah, your father came here when he went with the fellowship to destroy the ring.” 

“Oh yeah, I do remember that. With the cave troll and the Balrog.”

“Exactly. I remember that the exit of the mines will bring us closer to Lothlorien, and from there we can walk to Erebor.”

“Why would we walk to Erebor when Gondor is closer?”

“Because Agarhend expects us to go back to Gondor to report back to your father. He was probably following us since Mordor. The only logical thing we can do is to take a long way back to Erebor, as to not be seen, and then send a raven to Gondor about our findings.”

“That is a very detailed plan. How did you figure that out in such a small amount of time?”

“Well, I have been doing this for a very long time.”

Minasel gave a smile to Faronion, causing Faronion to smile back, and then they continued to walk. They walked around the mines for a long time, until Minasel tripped and fell over something. She shook her head and turned back to see what it was. Right behind her was the rotting body of an orc. Although mostly a skeleton, it was still armored and bits of flesh were still attached to the bone. Suddenly, Minasel began to spiral, memories from long ago started to invade her mind. She saw many more bodies of dead orcs, and could feel the lonely and sinister atmosphere of the mines. This all seemed too familiar for her. Blood started to fill up the floor under her feet and she knew; Sir Gwauthraug was making his way to pay a little visit. 

Instantly, all of this stopped. The blood had disappeared, the feeling had almost vanished, and all because Faronion was standing in front of her, holding her face. “Breath, Minasel.” Faronion said, in a calm soothing voice. 

Minasel took deep breaths, as Faronion took her to an empty area of the mines and set up a campfire with whatever he could find. “We will take a small breather.” Faronion said, almost commanding it as to make sure Minasel does not argue with him. 

Minasel hesitates, but then nods in agreement. Minasel could feel that her cloak was still wet from when they jumped in the pond, so she took it off, laid it somewhat close to the fire to dry it off, then sat down on her knees near the fire. Faronion did the same thing with his cloak, then sat down next to the fire. They sat right across from each other at either end of the campfire. Faronion leaned over and looked at Minasel intently as she sat on her knees and closed her eyes. “Well,” Faronion began, “Are you going to tell me what happened back there?”

“No.” Minasel answered immediately and fast. 

“Minasel, you can’t hide anything from me. I could see that there was something bothering you just a couple of minutes ago. You know it is okay to tell me if you need to get something off your chest.” 

Minasel sighed and opened her eyes to be met with Faronion’s stern yet concerned expression, “Faronion, I really do not want to talk about it right now.”

Faronion nods and relaxes, “Alright. I respect your wishes.”

Faronion and Minasel sat in silence for a while, until Faronion started to stare at Minasel. He observed how dark the red in her hair was and how it almost looks like blood, or even fire. He also looked closely at the single braid in her hair and how it is towards the back of her head, hidden from the world. Since he was not being so subtle about it, Minasel noticed and made a disgusted face. “What are you staring at?” Minasel asked, scrunching up her face and shaking her head, “I already told you I am not ready to tell you what happened.”

“Sorry, Minas, I was not trying to force you to tell me. It's just…” Faronion gestured to Minasel's head, “... You never take your hood down. I almost forgot you had red hair.”

Minasel holds a strand of her hair in her hand and looks at it, “I do have red hair. I got it from my mother. She had red hair too, but I believe that my hair is actually darker. I must get that from my father, since he had dark hair.”

“Also that braid in your hair, what is that for and why do you only have one?”

“This?” Minasel asked, holding the single braid on the back of her head that was decorated with two beads and a clasp, “This is nothing special. It’s just a common braid, every dwarf has it at one point.”

“I guess I am just confused about the beads in the braid and why you do not have more.”

“Right, you are not used to dwarvish culture, are you? Well, lucky for you I am half dwarf and have been living under their culture for all of my life, so let me teach you.”

Minasel moves over so she is sitting right next to Faronion and so he can see the braid in her hair. “Braids and beads are very important in dwarvish culture,” Minasel began, “They not only show your history and how powerful you are, but they also show your marital status. You get a special braid and bead when you are courting someone, another bead when you know that person is the one and you wish to marry, and then a bead when you are actually married.”

“So,” Faronion mumbles, poking Minasel’s braid, “Are you engaged?”

Minasel laughs really hard causing tears to come out of her eyes, “Oh Faronion, of course not, I am far too young! Also, do you really think anyone would want to marry me!? I am ugly in both dwarven and elvish standards!”

Faronion turns a bit red and looks away, a bit embarrassed, “I just thought… because you had two beads…”

Minasel calms down and pats Faronion on the back, smiling, “It is okay, Faronion, I get why you got confused. If I were being courted, I would have a much better braid. No, this is just a normal braid, and these beads are for my parents. When a parent dies, you can have beads made in their honor, so they can basically be with you wherever you go. The blue one is for my father, and the green is for my mother.” 

“Oh, but what about the clasp?”

“That represents that I’m the Captain of the Guards in Erebor! I was gifted this clasp when I was given the blessing to be captain. See, there is even a little raven carved in it!”

Faronion took a closer look at the clasp and could see that there was a little raven carved into it. Faronion smiled at Minasel, “That is incredible, Minasel. Who knew that there is such a deep meaning to simple beads.”

Minasel smiled and played with the two beads, “I guess it is very incredible. It is nice to know that my parents are always with me, no matter where I am.”

“Classic Minas. Are you going off a feeling, again?”

“Oh, not at all. I know that they are with me and have been protecting me for a very long time.”

Faronion looks at Minasel and cocks his head to the side, “Are you talking about spirits, Minas?”

Minasel nods, then suddenly looks uneasy. She quickly looks around to see that everything in her sight is back to normal. There is no blood dripping from the walls and spilling onto the floor, there are no strange shadow figures that are staring at her and whispering dark speech, and, most importantly, Sir Gwauthraug is nowhere in sight. Minasel sighs and turns back to Faronion, “I think I am ready to tell you the story of what happened that day. The day when my world completely shifted and everything changed, but if it was for better or for worse, I am not sure. To tell you what happened that day, I must go back to how it all started. Back to the very beginning, when I first started seeing the shadows.”


	10. Chapter 9: The Breaking of Minasel

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Minasel tells the story of her rough childhood to Faronion.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: The chapter contains ABUSE and TRAUMA. Reader discretion is advised.

“I never chose to be captain,” Minasel began her story, “King Dain thought it seemed fit to train me for battle, since him and Lady Dis were trying to hide my existence. Lady Dis, who has been taking care of me this entire time, thought the same thing. The minute I was able to walk, I was trained to swing a sword. To say that the two hated me would be an understatement. When I would do something wrong, I was thrown into a small stone room and kept there to think of what I have done. Sometimes, they would forget about me and I would stay there for days without food or water. You could imagine that this took a toll on my child-sized brain, being stuck in a stone prison without a single friend in sight, and so I started seeing things.”

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_A young Minasel sat in the stone room and cried. Her hands were bloody and scratched from hitting the rough door, she was shivering due to how cold the room was, and her stomach was growling from how little she has had to eat since being thrown into her stone prison. Minasel continued to cry, covering her face with her hands. What she did not see was that a shadow from the corner of the room started moving. A creature with long arms, legs, and a lanky body climbed out of the shadow. It’s eyes glowed white and it had several rows of teeth. It slowly crawled its way to Minasel and stuck out its big hand with long fingers to touch her. At this moment, Minasel looked up and screamed at the creature, holding her cloak up to cover her. Minasel’s screams startled the creature, causing it to scurry back into the corner and sit there with a sad look on its face. Minasel stares down the creature, holding her cloak and trying to catch her breath. Suddenly the creature speaks in a raspy low voice. “I am sorry to scare you,” the creature whined, “I heard you crying and wanted to see if you were alright.”_

_Minasel slowly let go of her hood and looked down, tears in her eyes, “I don’t feel alright… I am so alone…”_

_With that, Minasel started to cry again. The creature immediately crawled over to Minasel, trying to console her, “Don’t cry, dear girl! Everything will be alright!”_

_Minasel cries, “But it’s not! I am so alone and nobody likes me! They say I am unnatural and so nobody wants to be my friend!”_

_“Oh, dear child, do not cry. I know how you feel. Nobody likes me and they say I am unnatural too.”_

_Minasel looks up at the creature, wiping away her tears, “Really?”_

_“Of course, but I think it is great to be unnatural. That is what makes us special!”_

_“I guess you are right.”_

_“And if it makes you feel better, I would gladly be your friend!”_

_“You would?! That would make me so happy! My name is Minasel, what is your name?”_

_The shadow creature gave an embarrassed smile and looked away, “Minasel, what a pretty name. I wish I had a pretty name to call my own.”_

_Minasel looked at the creature with a sad look in her eyes, “You do not have a name?”_

_The creature shakes his head, feeling very shameful. Minasel, even after spending many hours crying, stands up and for once has a determined look on her face. “That simply won’t do!” Minasel declared, hands on her hips, “Everyone deserves a name. How about I give you a name?”_

_The creature looked at Minasel, becoming much happier, “I would like that.”_

_Minasel nods, then starts pacing around the room, hand under her chin, thinking. She paces for sometime then is struck with an idea. She turns to the creature, with her pointer finger out and her other hand behind her back, “For now on your name shall be Sir Gwauthraug.”_

_The creature thought a bit then smiled at Minasel, “Sir Gwauthraug? I love it! I shall forever go by that name as a reminder to everyone that you, Minasel, are my friend.”_

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“As years passed, my friendship with Sir Gwauthraug grew closer, but it also became more sinister. Everytime I visited the stone room, I would see him. It started out fine, but soon it became clear what his intentions were, although I didn't quite understand it at the time.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

_“Are we not talking today?” Sir Gwauthraug asked._

_Minasel sat in the corner of the room, back to the shadow creature. She sat in the corner of the room pouting. Suddenly, Minasel started crying, which caused Sir Gwauthraug to groan and slide over to stand next to Minasel. “I do not understand, Sir Gwauthraug.” Minasel cried, “Why do they always throw me in here after my training? Did I do something wrong?”_

_Sir Gwauthraug looms over Minasel and hisses, “Of course you do. You do not follow their expectations, what they want you to be. You are still very weak and naive, but I can see that there is something in you, it just needs to be awoken.”_

_Minasel looks up at Sir Gwauthraug, a confused look on her face, “Something inside of me? What is it?”_

_Sir Gwauthraug gave a sinister smile, “Let me show you.”_

_At that moment, Sir Gwauthraug grabbed Minasel and threw her across the room. Minasel toppled to the ground and groaned right before Sir Gwauthraug bit down on her arm. Minasel shrieked right before Sir Gwauthraug started hitting her on the ground then throwing her across the room yet again. Minasel shook as she pushed herself off the ground to be in a sitting position, so she could look up at Sir Gwauthraug’s evil smile. Minasel whined, tears streaming down her face, “Why are you doing this?”_

_Sir Gwauthraug chuckled as he got closer to Minasel, “Oh darling, it is because you have so much potential. But the only way I can get it out of you is if I break you down to your core.”_

_The torture went on for hours upon hours. It finally stopped when Lady Dis and King Dain opened the stone door, which was when Sir Gwauthraug vanished. They found Minasel laying on the ground, her back facing the door. She looked a bit bloody, but other than that she seemed completely normal, as if nothing had happened to her. King Dain looked at Minasel confused, “Did she fall asleep?”_

_“I don’t know,” Dis answered before calling out to Minasel, “Time to get up, child! You can come out now!”_

_Minasel slowly arose, as if she had just woken up from a long slumber. Her shoulders and head seemed weighted as they hung low and caused her to wobble and sway as she got up. She turned to Dis and King Dain with a dead look in her eyes, then walked out of the room, taking big and fast strides. Lady Dis and King Dain looked at each other in shock, realizing that she was not the same girl that they threw into the stone room moments ago._

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Something changed in me that day,” Minasel said, shivering at the thought, “I became ruthless and violent, but, in the king’s eyes, I was the perfect weapon. They would send me into battle and I would kill every single orc I encountered, but that wasn’t all. I would chop them into pieces, tear out their insides, and even repeatedly stab them, even if they were already dead. All the while, Sir Gwauthraug watched the thing he created. The towns folk and even the other soldiers were scared of me. I was always covered in blood, so they gave me the cruel nickname; the Red Soldier.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

_Minasel shuffled through the streets of a small village with other soldiers from Erebor. All the villagers immediately ran into their houses and shops and locked their doors and windows. Even the dwarven soldiers, who were with Minasel, stood far away from her. As Minasel shuffled through the streets, alone and covered in blood, the soldiers sang a low tune:_

_Beware the Red Soldier_

_With the sharp sword._

_She will tear you to bits,_

_When she is bored_

_Beware the Red Soldier,_

_A monster is she._

_When you see her,_

_It is best for you to flee_

_Beware the Red Soldier,_

_You heard what I said._

_Any one who approaches her,_

_Winds up dead._

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“After some time, I began to despise it more and more. I did not want to be known as a monster or murderer. I did not want people to be scared of me anymore. I was able to snap out of this trance and decided to go to the source.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

_Minasel stomped down the hallway to the stone room and walked inside. She had her sword drawn and she was ready for the worse to come. Sir Gwauthraug soon appeared with a sinister smile on his face, “Good evening, my dear Minasel.”_

_Minasel held her sword out, pointing at Sir Gwauthraug, “We need to talk, Sir Gwauthraug.”_

_“Oh, are we being a bit feisty today?”_

_“I do not want to be the 'Red Soldier' people say I am.”_

_“Oh is that all? Well I am sorry, but I cannot do anything about that.”_

_“Why not? You made me like this, you can take that part of me away!”_

_“I did not make you like this, you became what you were meant to be. I just gave you that little nudge, by breaking your mind.”_

_“Why would you do that?! You said we were friends!”_

_“I did? Well I was lying.”_

_Sir Gwauthraug started to grow in size and became more disformed. He went down onto all fours and an outline of a spin started to poke out of his back. He circled Minasel as she trembled in fear. He hissed and whispered at her, “I have found you at your most vulnerable state and have taken over your mind. You are my doll, with whom I can play with and control any way I see fit.”_

_Minasel dropped her sword and covered her ears, shrieking, “GET OUT OF MY HEAD!”_

_“I don’t think so. You belong to me now and I do not plan on leaving anytime soon. You live in my world now, dear Minasel, and as long as you are afraid of me, I will never leave.”_

_Minasel opened her eyes and looked on in horror as shadow figures, almost like Sir Gwauthraug but smaller, surrounded her. Sir Gwauthraug disappears leaving Minasel with the other spirits. Minasel runs through the halls trying to escape the shadow figures that are in every room she goes to. Soon, Minasel gives up and falls onto her knees in the middle of a corridor and weeps._

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“When I said that I wanted to put that part behind me, I meant it. I tried to do other things that would get rid of that deranged part of me. I started to study the stars more, I tried to read more, and I started practicing the fiddle. You would think that all of this would be good for me, because I was getting away from training and fighting, but that is why it is bad for me at the same time. My absence on the training guards caught the eye of Lady Dis and King Dain, so Lady Dis was called to ‘straighten me up’.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

_Minasel goes flying out of the doors of Erebor. She hit the ground hard, but managed to push herself up to come face to face with an angry Dis. Dis had her fist clenched and went to knock a blow on Minasel, but luckily the young girl was able to dodge in time. “You selfish little rat!” Dis screamed at Minasel._

_“I’m sorry Lady Dis! I did not know that I missed so many training sessions!” Minasel pleaded, stumbling onto her feet._

_“You are a disgrace! You and your elven mother!”_

_“DON’T YOU DARE SPEAK ABOUT MY MOTHER LIKE THAT!”_

_Minasel quickly covered her mouth, realizing that she screamed at the princess. Lady Dis looked at Minasel surprised, then her face turned angry as she marched to Minasel and held her by the front of her armor. “You should have died,” Dis sneered, tears in her eyes, “You and your filthy elf mother. Your mother should have died while she was pregnant with you in the Battle of the Five Armies. IF IT HADN’T BEEN FOR YOUR EXISTENCE MY SONS WOULD STILL BE ALIVE!”_

_Minasel hesitated, looking at Dis with tears streaming down her face, then she wiggled free from Dis’ grasp and started running away from Erebor. Minasel looked away rubbing her eyes as she ran. She didn’t care where she was going, as long as she was away from that horrible mountain of dwarves. She ran so far and so aimlessly that she did not look where she was going and fell straight into a hole. She screamed as she hit the sides of the hole until she finally fell onto the ground. The ground itself was made of stone, which made for a hard landing. Minasel panted as she looked around at her surroundings. There were many tunnels of stone, all dark and damp. Nothing looks familiar to her and there was no sight of anyone._

_As Minasel stood up, she heard a horn sound, the pitter patter of feet, and the growls and grunts of creatures. Minasel realized she had fallen into a goblin cave and a pack of goblins were running right towards her. She turns around and started to run down one of the corridors, hoping that it will lead her out of the mess she has fallen into._

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“This place kind of reminds me of the goblin cave,” Minasel looked around, feeling slightly uncomfortable, “It was dark, dirty, and there were dead bodies everywhere. When a goblin would die, or if they killed an intruder, they would just leave the body there and feed off it. I guess the one difference is that the goblin cave was a massive maze. I did not know where I was going or where I already went, and, to make matters worse, I had to hide from the goblins so I wouldn’t get killed. I was in there for a few weeks, but with no source of daylight it felt even longer. I was starving, I didn't have any water, and I had no weapon to protect myself. I was ready to give up and die right there.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

_Minasel was sitting on the ground, leaning up against a large rock. Her cloak was ripped to shreds from crawling into small spaces and trying to bandage up her wounds. Her lips were chapped and bleeding, most of her armor was gone, leaving only her chest plate, because she had to find ways to move quietly around the cave, her leggings were torn showing her cut up legs, and the poor girl was as pale as death itself. Minasel looked up at the ceiling of the cave and realized that she probably would never go back to the mountain. She was far too weak to move and she could feel that her entire life was hanging by a thread, but she also made another realization. Maybe it was for the best that she left and did not come back. After all, she was alone most of the time, both her parents were dead, and it was very clear that none of her other relatives wanted her, especially Dis. The only thing that people wanted her for was to fight in battles and lead an army, but that is not the type of life she wants. Minasel slowly felt herself drift away as she closed her eyes. Suddenly, a voice brought Minasel back to the world and caused her to sit up. “Get up, my child.” A soft woman’s voice spoke to her._

_Minasel looked around and rubbed her ears, confused by what she was hearing. Was it all in her head? Another voice spoke up, but this time it was a man's voice, “I don’t think you are done yet, my daughter.”_

_Minasel looked straight ahead and saw two blue orbs of light floating in front of her. Minasel shook as she held onto the large rock she was leaning on to pull herself onto her feet. The orbs started to float down one of the tunnels. Minasel hesitated, questioning what she was doing, but slowly started to follow them. She hit against the walls, trying to keep her balance. The more she moved the faster she got until she was running after the orbs. They turned down many tunnels with Minasel following close behind, until light shined towards the end of one of the tunnels. Minasel started to run faster towards the light. Once she got to the end, the two orbs disappeared and Minasel jumped out and rolled down the small hill that was at the end._

_Minasel pants as she lays on her back in the grass and looks up at the sky. She almost forgot how blue the sky actually was, and nothing felt better to her then the feel of grass. She also took a minute to think about those two orbs that helped her out. They called her “my child” and “my daughter”, could those be her parents? If those were her parents, does that mean they have been watching over her this entire time? Minasel knew she could not stay on these thoughts for too long, she must go back to Erebor._

_Minasel trudged her way slowly to the mountain. She tried to take her time, because she knew that she would probably receive a terrible punishment when she gets back. Hours go by and she finally makes it up to the front doors of Erebor. Minasel placed her hands on one of the large doors, then slowly pushed it open. The kingdom was silent, so the noise of the door opening echoed throughout the halls. Minasel looked inside and saw that the entire place looked barren. “Erebor was never this empty,” Minasel thought to herself. Minasel slowly walked inside and looked around. Out from one of the hallways, Dis walked out and locked eyes with Minasel. Dis was completely frozen and her blue eyes grew big, and Minasel expected the worse to come after that, but it did not._

_Dis began to sob as she ran to Minasel and pulled her into a tight hug. “You're alive! Thank Mahal you are alive!” Dis yelled out, holding Minasel close and kissing her head._

_Minasel’s arms remained at her side as silently she watched Dis cry and hug her. Dis fell unto the floor and held Minasel’s hand, “When you left, I realized something was missing. I felt so empty that I did not know why. I see it now! You are not just an elf’s half-bred child, but you are also my son’s daughter. Look at you! You have his eyes! Why did I try to deny it for so long?!”_

_Dis pulled Minasel down into another hug, sobbed, and repeated, “I’m sorry! Please forgive me! I am so sorry!”_

_While Dis sobbed and repeated apologies, Minasel looked on, feeling so empty. She always wanted this, to be seen as family by Lady Dis, but it is too late now, Minasel is broken._

_~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~_

When Minasel finished her story, Faronion looked at her, mouth opened wide. Faronion was speechless, he knew that Minasel’s childhood was rough, but she never revealed to him everything that happened in detail. There was a great deal of silence between the two, until Minasel spoke up. “Well,” Minasel said, looking at Faronion, “I know that you have something to say.”

“Minasel, I didn’t know.” Faronion said, then proceeded to pull Minasel into a tight hug, “I wish I was there. I could have at least protected you.”

“It’s fine Faronion, there wasn’t anything you could have done. People tried and they failed.”

Minasel looked at Faronion and gave a warm smile, "And besides, I think you have done enough for me as it is. You did treat me with kindness, became my friend, and shared your family with me. I could not ask anymore of you."

Faronion held Minasel tighter, eyes shut, and spent some time holding onto her before letting her go. Minasel nodded at Faronion, with a hand on his shoulder, then stood up and went back over to her cloak. She could feel that it had dried, so she tied the cloak back on and put up her hood. Faronion watched Minasel then spoke up, “So, Sir Gwauthraug is the thing you see?”

Minasel nods, “Yes he is?”

“What is he?”

“I don’t exactly know. All I know is that he likes to feed off the fear of people and have complete control over them. The only way that he disappears is if the person he is controlling truly does not fear him.”

“And I can’t see him?”

“No, only his victim can, which makes the entire situation even-.”

Unexpectedly, Minasel screamed as something grabbed her and dragged her into the darkness. Faronion jumped onto his feet quickly, put on his cloak, and grabbed his torch. He started calling out to Minasel, worried about what might have happened. 

With Minasel, she could feel herself being dragged across the ground, but she could not see anything and the light from her and Faronion’s campsite was diminishing. Suddenly, Minasel could feel herself being lifted up off the floor and held in the air. A pair of glowing white eyes appeared in front of her and a familiar raspy voice spoke, “Time to play, my friend.”


	11. Chapter 10: What is Seen Cannot Be Unseen

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Faronion must save Minasel from something he cannot see himself.

Two orcs approach Agarhend, as he stands at a round table in Rivendell. “I am sorry my lord,” one the orcs said, “but we cannot find those two captains anywhere.”

Agarhend grumbled, then slammed his hands on the table and yelled, “By the name of the dark lord, ARE YOU ALL IDIOTS?!”

“W-what do you mean, my lord?” Another orc stuttered. 

“Is it not obvious. Those two rats went to the ruined parts of Moria to hide!”

“Ah, good observation, my lord. Should we not send a troop to Moria to catch them?” The orc standing close to Agarhend suggested.

“No, they would expect that. I want an army of orcs near each place in Middle Earth. We do not know where they will go, so I want all perimeters, especially the abandoned parts, heavily guarded. When they are seen, kill them on sight.”

“But my lord, should we not keep more of the army in Mordor to prepare for battle?” 

“EXCUSE ME, BUT DID I STUTTER?!” 

Agarhend moved close to the orc standing next to him. He moved his face close to the orc and snarled, causing the orc to stutter. The orc shook his head, causing Agarhend to stand up right and leave the area with the group of orcs following him. “If you do find them and fail to kill them, I will make sure to have your heads.” Agarhend warned, as he strode out of Rivendell.

One of the orcs behind the groups whispers to an orc beside him, “Lord Agarhend is insane. May I say, even more so than any of the lords before him.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Faronion held his torch out and ran around Moria, trying to find Minasel. He couldn’t see anything in front of him, so he hoped he would just run into her. Faronion swished his torch around, looking everywhere, but he saw nothing. That was until he heard a scream. It was loud and ear piercing, but also full of anguish and fear. “Minasel,” Faronion muttered to himself then ran off to where he heard the scream. He found himself in a room. It was easy to see in there without a torch since this seemed to be the only room with a single window. Broken stone and miscellaneous rubble and bones lay over the floor. In the middle lay a broken tomb and hovering over top is Minasel. She is floating in mid-air with her arms stuck to her side and her feet dangling. She looks absolutely terrified. 

What Faronion could not see was that Sir Gwauthraug was standing on the tomb grasping onto Minasel with one hand. His other hand was leaning on the broken tomb and his head was very close to Minasel’s with his teeth out. 

“Minasel, are you okay?!” Faronion asked, holding the torch out and grabbing for his sword. 

“Help… me…” Minasel stuttered, looking at Faronion with pleading eyes.

“Foolish girl!” Sir Gwauthraug laughed, “He can’t save you if he can’t even see me!”

Faronion drops his torch, causing it to go out once it hits the ground, and charges at Sir Gwauthraug and Minasel, swinging his sword around, trying to hit Sir Gwauthraug.The shadow creature jumps up to another platform, causing Faronion to run into the tomb, his chest crashing against the side. He lunges forward, but uses his arms to keep himself from hitting his head on the broken tomb. He looked up and saw the lettering on the tomb. The tomb itself was old and broken in half and the inscription was in dwarvish, but Faronion was able to make out the name that was on the tomb; Balin. This was Balin’s tomb.

Faronion smiled softly, remembering the stories his father told him. He can imagine the feel of arrows fly past his head, the sound of swords clashing, the rumble of the floor underneath as the cave troll breaks through the doors and stomps around the room, he can imagine the scene as it was when the fellowship went to destroy the ring. It felt exhilarating. It made his pulse quicken and the hair on the back of his neck stand up. Just imagining it makes him feel proud to be on the same ground as his father long ago. Although, he did wish that he could have been present in that moment, fighting off a swarm of orcs and seeing the crimson red and orange glow of the Balrog.

He snapped back into reality when he heard Minasel’s blood curdling scream. He stood up straight and looked up to see Minasel floating in front of him. Her eyes were big, looking on in pain, and she was slack jawed. Something oozes underneath her chest plate. It seemed to have the consistency of blood, but it was black and sort of sparkled. What Faronion did not see was that Sir Gwauthraug had stabbed his hand through Minasel’s back through her stomach, and had her hanging by his hand. He had stunned her, so she does not move and does not scream. 

Faronion’s shocked expression soon turns very aggravated. He clutches his sword tight and runs after Sir Gwauthraug once more. Sir Gwauthraug jumped away, while still holding Minasel, but, instead of stumbling and hitting a wall or another tomb, Faronion slid on his feet, quickly turned to face where Sir Gwauthraug and Minasel was, then ran towards them again. They do this over and over again, until Faronion leans over, trying to catch his breath.

Sir Gwauthraug laughs and shakes Minasel’s paralyzed body around, “You see that, child? Your knight in shining armor can’t even save you! No one will ever save you!”

As Sir Gwauthraug laughs at his victory, a small tear drips from Minasel’s eye and rolls down her cheek. Sir Gwauthraug moves close to Faronion, as his head is dipped down, and snarls, “Pathetic boy. You are just a pretty face and son of royalty, you are not a fighter. Pathetic excuse for a-” 

Before Sir Gwauthraug could finish his sentence, Faronion quickly looked up and stabbed Sir Gwauthraug in the head. Sir Gwauthraug gave out an unholy scream, dropping Minasel in order to cover the place Faronion stabbed him. Instantly, Minasel woke up and looked around frantically. She panted as she looked at Faronion and Sir Gwauthraug. She patted her chest but could feel nothing that implied that Sir Gwauthraug stabbed her. 

Faronion ran to Minasel and held her hands, “Are you okay?”

Minasel hesitated then gave a slight nod, “I… think so…”

The two captains suddenly turned as the saw light coming from where Sir Gwauthraug was stabbed. The shadow creature continues to scream as he twitches around and throws himself against walls. His figure starts to look fuzzy, as if he was about to disappear, but then he slowly turns back to normal. He uncovers his face and gives an evil smirk to Minasel and Faronion. 

“Stabbing me with your own blade?” Sir Gwauthraug growled, “Why aren’t you a clever boy.”

Minasel glared at Sir Gwauthraug then looked at Faronion as he looked at the shadow creature, completely terrified. Faronion can actually see Sir Gwauthraug. Minasel immediately went to the defense and stood up in anger, “What did you do to him?!”

“Me? Why I didn’t do anything.” Sir Gwauthraug chuckled, “He was the one who used his own sword to stab me. You know what happens when I am stabbed by anyone else besides you? That just means that there is one extra doll for me to play with.”

Minasel’s eyes widen in realization, as Sir Gwauthraug slowly makes his way to the two captains. Without hesitation, Minasel grabbed Faronion and ran out of the tomb. Holding his wrist, Minasel ran aimlessly around the mines, with Sir Gwauthraug quickly chasing after them. They ran for some time until Minasel could see a small red light. In hopes that it would be an exit, she started running towards it while dragging Faronion along. Faronion finally spoke up, “THIS is what you have been seeing?! THIS is the thing that has been torturing you?! Why didn’t you tell me this sooner?!”

“Because I thought this was something you didn’t need to know! This is my own battle, only I should be fighting this!” Minasel yelled back.

“Tell me how that worked out for you, because now I can see him, SO IT’S MY BATTLE TOO!”

Minasel and Faronion ran out of the dark mine into another room that was glowing red. They run down the stairs and over paths, as Sir Gwauthraug pulls himself across the ground trying to catch up with them. Minasel and Farion can see the exit up ahead but they are soon stopped by a large gap between them and the path that leads to their freedom. Sir Gwauthraug is close behind, so they know that they need to think of a plan and fast. Minasel looked around and saw an old rope hanging from the stone ceiling of the mine. She thought it might have been used to help lower and bring up dwarves that wear mining the sides. She looked up and saw the mechanisms used to do such a thing, but there was a piece of wood holding it from going down any farther and the stone around it was cracked and breaking apart. If someone were to pull on it, the rock on the ceiling would come crumbling down, and there is a chance that the entire mechanism could do the same. 

Minasel turned to Faronion and put a hand on his shoulder, “You want to do something risky?”

Faronion hesitated and bit his lip, then looked over at Minasel, “Will it help us get away?”

“It might. You just have to follow me.”

Minasel and Faronion moved slightly away from the gap as Sir Gwauthraug crawled over to them. He snickered and snarled, “Looks like you are at a dead end. What will you do now?”

Without hesitating, Minasel grabbed Faronion’s wrist and started running full speed to the gap. She swiftly jumped and grabbed the rope as high as she went towards the gap. Out of pure impulse, Faronion quickly grabbed a part of the rope under Minasel and jumped with her. Sir Gwauthraug quickly crawled to the edge, trying to catch them, but it was too late. The two captains were swinging on the rope all the way to the other side of the gap. They both held on tight as they heard the creak coming from the mechanism on top and see bits of stone fall down. Once they got to the other side, the two jumped off at the same time onto a safe platform. On the other side, they can see Sir Gwauthraug growling and yelling at them, right before the stone on the ceiling finally gave way. The crack had grown bigger, due to the weight of Minasel and Faronion on the rope. Stone, big and small, fell from the ceiling and some ended up falling onto the shadow creature.

Sir Gwauthraug screamed and yelled curses in black speech as he was being buried by the stones. Faronion and Minasel swiftly ran away, finally escaping the dreadful mines of Moria.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here is my tumblr. I would like to do more artwork for my story. Feel free to give me ideas or even draw your own artwork!  
> https://www.tumblr.com/blog/deathlikessodaandpizza


	12. Chapter 11: The Mirror of Our Past

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Minasel and Faronion arrive at Lothlorien and find that the adandoned elven holy land might still hold something that they desire.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A very long chapter! Sorry for that, but I hope you enjoy it all the same!

Over the span of a couple of days, Faronion and Minasel walked to their next destination. They did not rest during those days, but they did talk to each other. Faronion worried about his horse, which was last seen when they went into Rivendell. He feared that the horse might have been killed when Agarhend arrived with his army. Minasel tried to reassure him that Cyng probably ran away when he saw the army of orcs coming through, although she internally believed that Faronion’s beloved horse has passed on to the next life and is now walking with Valar. Minasel did not speak about what happened in the mines, which did not surprise Faronion. She is known as someone, who will not speak her mind until she is ready. Sometimes it will be a few months, and sometimes even a few years, depending on the severity of the situation. All Faronion knew was it’s best not to pester her about this, if he does not want to be chased down by arrows, flying from her bow towards his head.

With how long their adventure is taking them, the seasons are slowly starting to change. The snow is starting to melt away and the weather is becoming a bit warmer, with a flash of cold wind here and there. However, there are still trees without their leaves and flowers are still not ready to bloom yet. As the two captains walk, the snow crunches then melts beneath their feet and they hold their cloaks close to their face, feeling their noses turn red from the wind blowing in their face.

From what felt like forever, they finally reached the entrance of Lothlorien. This caused the Faronion and Minasel to pick up their pace and hurry into the elven holy lands, but it was just like Rivendell. Since all the elves left, no one was around to take care of it. The grounds are cluttered with dead leaves, the staircases are starting to crack and break apart, and the soft blue lights, which once lit the grounds, have lost their fire long ago. The state became more apparent once the two walked deep into Lothlorien. Some of the trees are dying away and thick vines cover every area. The vines curl themselves around statues, stone decor, and staircases, which caused some entrances to be blocked and for the captains to cut them down using knives or their swords. The once neatly cut grass is now overgrown and messy, being so tall that it surrounds the waist of Faronion and the lower torso of Minasel. 

Faronion sighs and starts hacking away at the grass with his sword. Minasel helped, using the knife in her boot to start cutting the grass in a different area. Faronion groaned, swinging his sword hard, cutting a big chunk of grass, “Look at us! Great warriors doing yard work!”

Minasel shrugged him off, “I don’t know, it is kind of relaxing.”

“But we should be cutting the throats of orcs, not overgrown grass. This is not what these swords are used for!”

“Just use your imagination, imagine the grass as an orc and…SLICE”

In a swift movement, Minasel spun around, switched the knife from her right hand to her left hand, took out her sword, and sliced a big chunk of grass, causing it to swiftly fall, but before it fell to the ground, the wind picked it up and carried it away. Faronion watched the grass blow away then shook his head and continued to chop at the grass. Minasel put away her sword and did the same thing with her knife. “And besides,” Minasel continues, chopping the grass, “we are in the holy lands! We have to show them our respect.”

“Show WHO exactly?” Faronion asked, standing up and hands on his hips, “If I recall, the elves of Lothlorien left Middle Earth right after the ring was destroyed. So, THERE IS NO ONE HERE!”

Minasel groans and rolls her eyes, “Faronion, you are as stubborn as a dwarf! It does not matter that this place is abandoned, it is still a holy place and it still deserves respect. Also… do you want me to tell your mother and father that you did not try to clean up the land where your great grandmother once ruled?”

Faronion turned around to face Minasel, as she stood up straight and admired her knife, watching the light reflection on the blade. “You wouldn’t!” Faronion growled, glaring at Minasel.

“Oh I would,” Minasel smirked, “I wonder how much trouble you would get in for not doing a simple task, such as yard word for your great grandmother.”

“You are the worst.” Faronion groaned and began to chop away at the grass again.

“You will thank me later, when we have to lay on this ground and not have sharp grass poking and tickling us while we rest.” Minasel smiled proud. 

Faronion would not admit it, but, even though swinging his sword as many times as he did hurt his arms, cutting grass was a bit therapeutic. It certainly helped when he let his imagination soar and pretend he was chopping away at orcs. In a few short hours, the lawns of Lothlorien were all cut short and were back looking very nice. The captains were not able to make it look clean cut through, since they do not have the tools to do so, but they thought it was good enough. Minasel walked over to Faronion’s side happily, “You see what we did? Lothlorien is looking somewhat nice again.”

“I’ll have to admit, the grounds look a bit better now.” Faronion agreed, looking around.

“I believe this is the safest place for us to rest for the night.” Minasel said and sat down.

Faronion, instead of joining Minasel, started to walk towards one of the stairs. Minasel looked to him and shouted, “Faronion! Where are you going?!”

“I am going to explore!” Faronion shouted back and smiled ear to ear, “This is the land of my great grandmother after all!” 

Faronion ran up the stairs, leaving Minasel behind. He chopped away at the vines that blocked his path, but he continued onward. He walked into every room he could and imagined what life would have been like there. He looked through books, sat in chairs, and admired everything around him. Faronion pretended to be Aragorn for a short while as he walked around some of the parts. He wanted to know what his father saw and what he did when he was in this land. Did he talk to any of the elves here? Did he study their culture and walk with them? What happened when he and the rest of the fellowship came here? It was hard for him to imagine what the land was once like, when everything is in ruin now. Faronion tried to light one of the lanterns so he could get a clear picture, but there was no luck. Even with his incredible ability to start fires, he cannot light something that has been dead for so long. 

Faronion continued to climb up and down stairs until he jumped onto an elevated platform attached to a tree. He looked up and saw the branches of the trees swirl and cross into a beautiful pattern, with the full moon dead set in the middle of it all. Faronion walked as he looked up, watching the pattern change in form as he moved around. Suddenly, Faronion stopped as he ran into something tall and fell down. He sat up, shook his head, and looked to see what he ran into. In front of him was a stone statue of his great grandmother; Galadriel. The statue depicted her wearing a long, flowing dress, with long, wavy hair, and a crown laid on top of her head. The crown was simple, with a weave design of vines and small flowers towards the back. In her hands she holds up a small vial in her left hand, and, in her right hand, she cradles a large pitcher. The statue looks on with a soft smile on her face, capturing the kindness and beauty of Galadriel, even in stone form. The statue itself was covered in greenery and vines from the years it has been abandoned. Faronion stood up quickly and started to remove the vines and greenery off the statue, one by one, until it was clean.

Once the statue was cleaned up, Faronion took a couple of steps back and bowed to it, as if it were the lady herself. “Hello, Lady Galadriel,” Faronion said, keeping his eyes on the statue's face, “I know you probably don’t know me, but I’m your great grandson, Faronion Elessar. You could probably guess by my last name that I am the son of Aragorn and Arwen. No surprise, right? I mean look at me!” 

Faronion takes off the hood of his cloak to show off his ears and the rest of his hair, “I have the ears of an elf, but my hair and face belongs to a regular human. My mother and father even believe at this rate I am going to get a full grown beard in no-”

Faronion cuts himself off, realizing that he is rambling. He clears his throat and speaks again, “Any way… I am here with a friend of mine. Her name is Minasel, and she is a halfbreed like me, except she is half dwarf and half elf. We are on an adventure to save Middle Earth! There is this elf that is trying to rebuild Mordor and create an army, all because he was upset with grandfather. Although, I am a little nervous…”

Faronion sits down next to the statue and sighs, “I have never been a part of something this big before. I am a captain of the Gondor guards, but I have never fought in a war and had a big adventure before. I know that I have Minasel with me to help, but she is not used to it either. She has fought in battles before, but she seems very unsure about this journey. It’s like she is afraid… and I completely understand that. Both of our father’s went on a journey that changed the days of Middle Earth forever… but what if we can’t do it? What if we fail and destroy our families name? I do not want to disappoint my father… For once I want to make him proud…”

Faronion looked up at the statue, looked away, disappointed, “I wish I was actually talking to you great grandmother. I wish I could hear your wisdom for me. I could really use it right now.”

Suddenly, Faronion felt wind blow through his hair. It was not cold and strong, but it was warm and calm. It combed through his hair and whispered in his ear. Although he could not make out any words, he took it as a sign that Galadriel was listening to him and that everything would be alright.

“Thank you great grandmother,” Faronion sighed and smiled to himself, “Thank you.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

If Faronion was going to leave her alone to explore Lothlorien, Minasel is going to do her own exploring, although she already knew where she was going. Minasel has been to Lothlorien before, although it was long ago, when the place was full of life. Minasel closed her eyes as she walked around, trying to retrace her steps. There was something very specific she was trying to look for. She walked aimlessly around Lothlorien for a little bit until she opened her eyes and saw it; the Mirror of Galadriel. Like everything else, the mirror was covered in vines and greenery, so Minasel quickly went to work and cleaned up the mirror so it was back in its original state. She moved her hands around the edges feeling the bumpy texture of the fountain and closed her eyes.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

_One thing you would never expect King Dain to do was go into an elvish place to ask for help, but here he is in Lothlorien, trying to seek help from the elves. Behind his shuffled Minasel, head hanging low and with a grim look on her face. She was not wearing any armor, but instead a soft blue gown with long sleeves and a golden rope belt, tied around her waist. She still kept her hood and cloak on though, but pulled over her tighter, trying to cover her face. Following King Dain and Minasel were a few dwarven soldiers, carrying large weapons. A couple of blonde elves, wearing white gowns, led the group to the thrones of Galadriel and Celeborn. The two elf royalties stood up with such grace and walked over to the group, hand in hand._

_“Greetings, King Dain of Erebor. What brings you to our humble sanctuary?” Celeborn asked, eyeing up everyone in Dain’s group._

_“Hello Lord Celeborn and Lady Galadriel. I would not have come here if it was not an emergency.” King Dain said, sounding out of breath and a bit tired._

_“And that is?”_

_King Dain quickly grabbed Minasel by her wrist and lightly pulled her to his side, “This is my best captain and relative, Minasel. Recently, we had an army go out led by her and only she came back. To make matters worse, the Lady Dis fell ill, while Minasel was in battle, and passed away the next day. The poor thing refuses to eat, get out of her room, and she screams every night, as if she was being murdered! There is something wrong and we have tried everything, but it is no use. We were hoping that you could help us.”_

_Celeborn walked over to Minasel and held her face. He examined it for awhile then let it go, “Ah yes. Your captain seems to be going through a lot of trauma recently and it has taken a toll on her. The best thing you can do is to keep her here with us for an entire year, just so she can recover.”_

_“Yes, yes, anything to help her! I do not want to lose my best captain.” Dain nodded, trying to hide the worry in his voice._

_“So it is settled, Minasel will stay with us for a year in order to recover. Guards, please take her bags.” Celeborn said, then a couple of elven guards came and took Minasel’s bags from the dwarven soldiers._

_Dain went up to Minasel and clasped her hands in his, “See, Minasel. They are going to help you become well again. It may be a year before you come home, but soon that year will fly past us and we will meet again. Be good, dear child.”_

_Minasel nods at King Dain, with a dead empty look in her eyes. As the dwarves are being escorted out, Minasel can feel someone whisper in her head. “Welcome Minasel, daughter of Kili, to your temporary home.” The voice spoke, “Meet me at the mirror once night has fallen upon the land and all is asleep.”_

_Minasel turned around to find Galadriel staring and smiling at her. Minasel stared back, observing her silk white dress and pure blonde hair. Celeborn suddenly snapped Minasel out of her distracted gaze and placed a hand on Minasel back, “Let me show you to your room, young Minasel.”_

_Celeborn led Minasel up the stairs to her room. Minasel was able to get a quick glance of Galadriel before being led up to her room. The room was located in a small wooden house in the trees. The house had a few levels and was lit up with white and blue lights. In the wooden house, elves walked the grounds and talked to one another, all of them being female. Celeborn showed Minasel to a room in the middle of the hallway. Pulling back the white, silk curtain, revealed the room itself. Everything in the room was made from this pale wood, from the bed, to the desk and chair, and everything seemed to have a curved, tree-like design to it, as if they grew trees to specifically make this furniture. The bed was located in the far left side of the room, covered in white sheets and blankets. Next to the bed was a matching nightstand with a small lamp placed on the top. At the foot of the bed, pushed against the left wall, was a pale wardrobe with a tree carved in the front of it and with gold handles attached to the doors. On the right side of the room sat a regular desk with curved legs and a chair to match it. The most important part of the room, however, was the large set of windows that covered the far wall and revealed the entire kingdom of Lothlorien._

_The guards, that were carrying Minasel’s luggage, placed the bags at the end of the bed, bowed to Celeborn and Minasel, then walked away. Celeborn nods at Minasel and smiles, “I will let you unpack and relax. Feel free to come to me or Galadriel when you are ready.”_

_Celeborn bows to Minasel and leaves the room. Minasel spends the next couple of hours putting away her things and setting up everything in her room. She placed all her clothes in the wardrobe and placed journals, a quill and ink vial, and a couple of opened letters on the desk. The letters have a red wax seal stamped on each one of them, with a picture of a raven engraved in them, which was originally used to hold the flap of the envelope in place, but now the wax seal sits at the bottom as the flap is tucked snug into the envelope itself. When Minasel goes to open up one of the envelopes to read the envelope inside, she notices elves walking by her room. Minasel swiftly walks to the doorway and looks out at the elves that walked by. Each one of the elves wave to one another as they retire to their rooms. Minasel remembered what she was told when she arrived in Lothlorien and walked out of her room and down the halls. She walked outside and ran up and down staircases, questioning on where this mirror is. After some time of searching, she finally found it._

_Tucked in a secluded part of Lothlorien, sat a small stone platform and in the middle of this platform was a silver basin. Near the platform stood Lady Galadriel in all her beauty. She carried a metal pitcher which she held carefully in her arms. Minasel walked over to her and the basin, hesitantly and a bit confused. Lady Galadriel gave a soft smile to Minasel, “Welcome. I am glad you could join me tonight.”_

_“I honestly… did not expect you to be here, my lady.” Minasel said, looking down and playing with the sleeve of her gown._

_“Oh? But did you not hear my call to you?”_

_“I did, my lady, but I thought it could not possibly be your request to see me.”_

_“Why would you think that?”_

_“...because I caused the death of so many innocent lives… I am a horrible being, my lady...”_

_Galadriel chuckled a bit, then walked up to Minasel, and lifted her chin, lightly, so Minasel was looking up at her, “You are a very smart girl, Minasel. But there are many things you do not know about yourself just yet.”_

_Galadriel walks over to the basin and starts pouring the water from the pitcher she was holding into it. Minasel walked over and also stood by the basin, but on the side opposite of Galadriel. Minasel spoke up and looked at Galadriel with a serious look in her eyes, “Lady Galadriel, I do not think you understand what I am telling you. I am a child of a dwarf and elf, born out of wedlock. I am neither dwarf nor elf, but an abomination to society. I see the shadows of evil beings and once became their leader. I have killed so many creatures and led my own acquaintances to their death. All I do is cause more and more problems for the people and the world around me. I am a mistake… that is all I am… a mistake. A horrible horrible HORRIBLE mistake…”_

_Minasel covers her face, quickly, trying to not start crying. She could feel her eyes get hot and start to sting as she holds back tears. She rubs her eyes with her sleeves and looks up at Galadriel, still feeling like any moment she would break down crying. Galadriel stared at her for a bit, then gestured to the basin, “This is my mirror. It will show events from the past, present, and events that have not come to pass yet. This will reveal to you the truth of your life. Go and look upon the waters.”_

_Minasel hesitated, but soon leaned over and looked at the water, as she held onto the sides of the basin. At first, she could not see anything, but her reflection staring back at her. However, the water starts to ripple and she started seeing images flash in the water, one by one;_

_A company of thirteen dwarves, a wizard, and a hobbit, walking through the mountains in order to regain the homeland of the dwarves and vanquish a dragon._

_The forest of Mirkwood, covered head to toe with spider webs._

_A rune stone, with the words “return to me” carved in khuzdul._

_A poisoned wound, suddenly healed in a flash of light._

_Three tombs sitting side by side with a voice echoing in her ear, “The king under the mountain is dead! Long live the king!”_

_Letters with red seal’s stacking up one by one, while a soft humming is heard. The letters stop pilling and the humming ceases when a baby’s cry is heard._

_The clashing of sword against sword, as the sword rings in her ear._

_Suddenly darkness over fills Minasel’s vision, as someone or something starts to speak in black speech._

_The talking gets louder and louder, as blood starts to drip down over the darkness. Minasel felt scared, as if there would be nothing that could bring her out of this nightmare, but something did._

_She could see a hand grab onto her hand and pull her out of the darkness and into the light._

_At this moment, Minasel ripped herself away from the mirror. She fell down on her back, panting, and looking up at the branches weaved over her. She sat up and placed her hand over her chest, feeling her heart pound out of her chest and trying to calm down her breathing. Minasel looked up at Galadriel, as the elven queen walked out from behind the basin. “What was-” Minasel began to ask before Galadriel leaned over and helped Minasel stand up._

_“Who you really are, and something special that will come to you in the near future.” Galadriel said, smiling at Minasel then turning her back to the young captain to walk out of the area, “Over the year that you will spend here, I will try my best to help you through any problems you may have, but it is up to you, to go through with it and try to find a peace of mind for yourself.”_

_“I understand, Lady Galadriel, but I guess I am a little bit confused about one thing.”_

_“What might that be, dear child.”_

_“You called me the daughter of Kili, when I first arrived here… how did you know that?”_

_Galadriel turned around and gave a soft smile to Minasel, “I know more about you then you could ever realize. And with what I know, I will give you your first lesson: Do not hide who you are or who you belong to. It is time for the name of Durin to be brought back into the light and to be carried by the daughter of one of the long dead princes of Erebor.”_

_Minasel watched in amazement, as Galadriel swiftly walked up the stairs, out of the area and out of sight._

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Minasel!” Faronion called out, roaming around the grounds, “Minasel, where did you go!?”

Faronion left and spent time with the statue of his great grandmother for a while, but once he went back to the area Minasel was at when he left, she completely disappeared. Now, Faronion has been roaming the entire land of Lothlorien, searching for her. He ran up and down stairs and looked under many canopies, but with no luck. In due time, Faronion ran down a random staircase and found the area where the Mirror of Galadriel sat. He looked around, amazed that he found something so incredible and important to, not only his family, but the entirety of Middle Earth. However, once he looked down, he realized that he was not the first person to find the relic.

Curdled up near the base of the basin, layed Minasel, wrapped up in her cloak and sleeping. Unlike most times Faronion has seen her sleep, Minasel looked more at peace and calm. She even rocked a bit and gave a small smile as she slept.

“Aw,” Faronion gushed to himself, smiling, “She is finally having some good dreams.”

Faronion sat beside Minasel and patted her head lightly, trying not to wake her. This happy moment soon ended, when a loud horn can be heard all throughout the area. Minasel quickly jolted awake and jerked her head around, trying to hear where that noise came from. The horn sounded again with the added noise of thousands of feet stomping on the ground. “What was that?” Minasel asked, still somewhat tired and rubbing her eyes.

Faronion’s eyes widen, realizing what was going on, “Orc horn. They found where we are, we have to leave right away!”

Faronion grabbed onto Minasel’s hand as he stood up and began to run around the kingdom. Minasel followed close behind, trying to look out for any orcs that could sneak up and attack them. Once they ended their last set of stairs that would lead them to the exit, the two captains hid behind a mass amount of greenery so they would not be seen. They peeked out to look at the exit, but it seems as though they are too late. A small army of orcs are guarding the exit, with their weapons out and ready. More orcs come by and leave the area, looking out for the two guards. There seems to be a large amount of orcs covering every inch of Lothlorien. Minasel and Faronion duck back behind the bush, in order to talk to one another. “We are surrounded.” Faronion whispered quietly looking around at his surroundings. 

“I know. They have blocked our escape route.” Minasel whispered back.

“How did they know that we are here?”

“I don’t know, Agarhend must have a plan set up. But now is not the time to discuss what red eye creep is doing or what he will do, we are being timed and any moment we could be spotted.”

Minasel and Faronion sat in silence for a moment, trying to think of a way they can escape the dangerous situation they are in. Faronion looked around at the dying trees and the crumbling building. He then, silently, reached under his chest plate and pulled out his tinder box. Minasel looked at the tinder box questioning what he was doing. Faronion looked at the tinder box then at Minasel and whispered, “I think I have an idea… but you won’t like it.”

Minasel’s eyes seem to widen as she realized what Faronion is thinking of. “No…” Minasel whispered. 

“Minasel, listen. There are too many orcs for us to handle and they are blocking our exit.” Faronion whispered.

“I know, but-”

“We only have one way for both of us to escape, unharmed, and THIS might be it.”

“Faronion-”

“Minasel, I need you to trust me on this. Please, just trust me.”

Minasel hesitated then quietly groaned, “Fine… I will help run a distraction, so the orcs don’t catch you.”

Faronion nods and smiles, “Thank you, Minasel. You are the best.”

Minasel shakes her head and crosses her arms, “I can’t believe you have talked me into burning down the holy lands.”

“Trust me, my dear friend, Minasel. This is going to work.”


	13. Chapter 12: The Destruction of Lothlorien

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Faronion knows what he must do, although he is ashamed that he must do it to a place such as Lothlorien.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: The chapter contains graphic depictions of GORE and MURDER. Reader discretion is advised.

A group of three heavily armored orcs stand by the exit of Lothlorien and talk amongst each other. One orc was tall and scrawny with a long face and holding a jagged blade. Another orc was tall, but larger in his arms and his stomach. This orc had a smaller head and wore a helmet on top of it, and he was wielding a large battle axe. The last orc was very petite, the shortest of the three, wearing a matching helmet as the larger orc, and wielding a long spear. 

“Waitin’, waitin’, waitin’. That’s all we do!” The tall orc grumbled, his voice wheezing and screeching with every word. 

“This boss sure is a strange one, settin’ us up here!” The large one spoke quietly, his voice booming and deep. 

“Strange? He is down right crazy!” The small orc squeaking voice chimed in. 

“Quiet down, pipsqueak, we don’t want the others to hear us and tell the boss.” The large orc whispered to the small orc. 

“I can’t take it anymore!” The tall orc screamed out, throwing his sword down.

“What are you bloody yellin’ about now!?” The large orc growled at the tall orc. 

“The boss is a strange one, he is! All he does is scream and threaten us with death! WELL I HAD IT!” The tall orc yelled. 

“Quiet down, will ya!” The large orc yelled back.

“I will not!” The tall orc yelled, “The boss is crazy! He is going to lead us to our death and all this hard work will be for nothin’! Even worse is that he has us runnin’ after these kids, that are little to no threat!” 

“Shut it!” The large orc warned the tall orc once again. 

“No!” The tall are yelled louder, “You only want me to ‘shut it’, because you know I’m right! These kids are no threat! They are so weak, I could kill them with one fell blow to the head! THE BOSS IS CRAZY, THE KIDS ARE NOT A THREAT, AND WE SHOULD ALL JUST-”

Before the tall orc could even finish his ramblings, an arrow was shot clean through the back of his head. It went through his head entirely and stabbed the ground right in front of the large orc and the small orc. The tall orc’s body swayed a bit, then fell face first in the ground, dead. When the tall orc fell to the ground, it revealed that Minasel, standing with bow in hand, was the one who shot the arrow and killed him from behind without any of the other orcs knowing about it. The orcs starred at Minasel, as she placed her bow back with the arrows on her back. 

“Well, isn’t that unfortunate.” Minasel said, going up to the dead orc and nudging his head with her foot. 

The large orc and small orc stood there petrified, as they watched the young captain examine the body of their dead friend. Minasel stepped on top of the body and bounced a bit, now looking the large orc straight in his soulless eyes.

“It serves him right though,” Minasel said, smirking a bit, “He did say that my friend and I were no threat. I did not train for years and fight in many wars, where I killed THOUSANDS of orcs, just to be called weak by some orcish rat, who has not been alive for that long.”

The large orc looked angry at Minasel’s insults to his kind. He did not care that she was standing on the body of his friend, but he did care that some puny soldier was trying to tarnish his own dignity. He patted around his body, then pulled out a small horn. He stumbled with it a bit, but he eventually brought the horn to his mouth and blew. A loud, low base noise sounded out through the horn and filled the entire area. Within seconds, the pounding of feet and clashing of armor can be heard getting closer and closer to Minasel and the two other orcs. Minasel looked at where the noise was coming from and shrugged. 

“Guess this is my cue.” Minasel said as she hopped off the body of the dead orc and dashed off towards the stairs, before the large orc and small orc could catch her. 

The small orc screamed out and pointed at Minasel, as she ran up the stairs, “Get that captain! She must not get away!”

As Minasel ran up and down the stairs, being chased down by a group of orcs and slashing the heads off any orc that tried to stop her, Faronion was sneaking into some of the old buildings of Lothlorien, trying to find more materials for his little trap to take down the orc army in Lothlorien in one fell sweep and, ultimately, give Minasel and him a chance to escape. Although he does have some material with him, in order to destroy the entirety of Lothlorien and ultimately stop the orcs sent there, he needed enough material that would wrap around every aspect of the land. Everytime Faronion found something that he could use, he became a little bit more anxious. Of course he was more than sure about his ability to perform the task and he knew that the orcs would be trapped with no way of escaping, but what if he and Minasel can’t get out either? This is time sensitive and if he and Minasel don’t leave at the right time, they will die amongst the orcs. Faronion tried to shake the horrible idea out of his head as he did some calculations and mixed some herbs and powders. 

In due time, Faronion was finished and snuck onto the stairs, carefully carrying his creations in a burlap sack and using his other hand to carry a torch. The dead bodies of orcs, some without their heads, scattered around every part of the land. At least he knew where Minasel was and if she was safe or not. Faronion also dropped his own little surprise as well; little blue bags full of mixed powders. When he found that no one was around, Faronion snuck over to a tall tree. It was much older and looked as if it was dying, with dead leaves being attached to the branches and some branches completely bare, all together. The branches of the tree are crossed and interlocked with branches from other trees around Lothlorien. Faronion knew that this would be the perfect tree if any to do what he was about to do. 

Faronion squatted next to the old tree and searched through his creations to see what he could use. He soon took out one of the little pale brown bags he had made and set it a flame, using the torch he was carrying. As quick as possible, he threw the flaming bag as high as he could in the tree and it too quickly caught fire. Back to back, more and more trees caught fire, lighting Lothlorien with a bright yet eerie red and orange glow. A couple of orc soldiers started running down the stairs, stepping over the dead bodies of their fallen comrades, towards Faronion. 

“There’s the other guard!” One of the orc soldiers yelled and pointed at Faronion, standing over the body of a headless orc body. 

Faronion, without hesitation, lit another brown bag and tossed it at the orcs. It flew over the orcs heads and landed behind them. Although it did not hit the orcs, it did bump into one of the blue bags Faronion dropped beforehand and it caught fire. With not even a second to spare, the blue bag exploded, shooting fire, dust, and rubble everywhere. The orc soldiers were taken with the blast and exploded into bits and pieces. While orc parts flew everywhere, Faronion took this chance to escape from the area, picking up his things and running towards another staircase farther away. As he ran, he proceeded to let his torch down and let the flames graze across the grass and shrubs, making sure they caught fire as well. 

As Faronion ran up and down the staircases, he dropped more blue bags and threw more inflamed brown bags at trees and ruined structures. While he ran, he could hear the sounds of explosions and the blood curdling shrieks of orcs, as their limbs are being ripped away from their bodies. Faronion reached a platform that was much higher than the others, and realized that this would be the best point for him to stop and take a breather. Faronion turned around and beheld his hard work.

All the trees surrounding the area were engulfed in flames, crackling, and falling apart slowly. The ancient structures are in the same point of disarray, with their walls crumbling to the ground and fire shooting out of small openings. There were still explosions going off in the distance, giving off more louder noises and brighter lights. Towards the bottom, Faronion could see a small group of orcs on one of the staircases, trying to escape the fires. They ran around back and forth, panicking, not knowing what to do in this horrible situation. Suddenly, as if it was predetermined what their fate was, one of the trees snapped, then it cracked, leaning towards the orc group. The orcs looked at it slowly, then the flaming trees started to fall. It came closer and closer to the group of orcs and they ran around screaming and shouting for help, until it crashed into them, causing a loud crash and silence from the orcs. As it hit the ground, an array of ash, dust, and sparks fire into the air and rain down softly, as if it is the first snow of the season. Faronion was absolutely amazed about how beautiful this destruction could be.

Faronion’s train of thought was interrupted, however, when all the screams of the orcs were overcome by an orc’s evil laughter. Faronion looked over at the other side of the platform and could see the large orc and small orc from before, cornering Minasel with a blade to her throat. Faronion could see their lips move, but he could not hear what they were saying. He moved down the stairs, as far as the flames would let him, then jumped over the edge and landed on the ground. With the heat warming up his face and the fire whipping around, but barely touching him, Faronion snuck over the where the orcs and Minasel was, trying to stay hidden. With one hand still clutching the torch, which has now lost it’s flame, he unsheathed his sword and held it close as he listened into the conversation. 

“Finally! We caught you, little rat!” The small orc cheered and shouted, dancing around the larger orc who was holding the blade of the battle axe to Minasel’s throat.

“Little rat? Look who's talking.” Minasel smirked, laying on her back, propped up with her elbows. 

“Silence filth!” The large orc roared, bringing the blade closer. 

Minasel let out a loud laugh tilting her head back, causing the orcs to look at her, confused.

“Why are you laughing?!” The small orc demanded.

“Oh, it is nothing. I just find you two absolutely hilarious.” Minasel smirked again, “Also my neck is very ticklish.”

“Stop laughing! We are going to kill you!” The small orc shouted, his voice cracking at the end. 

“Oh, you two are too funny! Your little arguments and threats of killing me are absolutely hilarious!” Minasel laughed.

“That’s it!” The large orc groaned then lifted the battle axe up and ready to slash it straight into Minasel’s head. 

With quick reflexes, Faronion grabbed the last bag he had, a pale brown one, lit it with one of the inflamed trees and threw it at the orcs, sitting the larger orc straight in the face. The larger orc proceeded to drop the axe and scream, as he felt his face being boiled alive by the fire. She staggered around, covering his face, and almost stepping on the small orc. Faronion stood up and walked, so he could be seen. He stands in front of a large fire, with both torch and sword in hand. Feeling the sweltering heat, he shakes off his hood revealing his pointed ears and messy, brown hair. He stares at the two orcs with a stern expression crossing his face. Minasel looked over, still on the ground, and smiled once she saw Faronion.

“Well well well,” Minasel said, a cocky grin on her face, “If it isn’t the shining knight, here to save the damsel in distress. And I’M the damsel!”

The large orc uncovered his face, revealing a huge redmark covering the middle of his distorted face and growled, seeing the one guard. Faronion simply threw the extinguished torch to the side and readied his sword. The smaller orc yelled, spear in hand and charged at Faronion. In smooth movements, Faronion spun out of the way and behind the smaller orc as he charged, then proceeded to kick the tiny orc into the fire. The orc shrieked and kicked around, as he fell into the fire, and felt his skin melt off his bones, unable to get up. 

Faronion turned to face the large orc, as the last orc standing approached him. The orc went to slash his axe down on the guard, but Faronion jumped over his shoulder and slashed his back. The orc groaned in pain, but quickly turned around and tried to attack Faronion again with no success. Faronion tries to slash his sword down onto the large orc, but the orc just uses the handle of his battle axe to block his sword and hold it there. 

“The boss will be happy when I come back with your head!” The orc laughed, pushing Faronion away.

They fought back and forth for a while, as the fire raged on and Lothlorien crumbled around them. Faronion was able to get some slashes on the orc, but it was near to impossible to hit him all the time, since he is larger and stronger than Faronion. Minasel watched the back and forth for a while, before standing up on her own and going off to the side to grab her bow and arrows, and her sword, which she dropped when she was fighting the two orcs before. 

Faronion could see that there is an exit near, but he could not just leave with Minasel at this very moment, the orc will surely catch them before they could reach the exit. However, the window of time was slowly closing, as more of Lothlorien was being engulfed in flames and the smoke was becoming denser. He would need to use his wit if he and Minasel were going to make it out there alive. He looked up and saw one of the trees swaying back and forth; Faronion knew exactly what that meant. 

Faronion simply looked the orc in the eyes, as they stood face to face, and sheathed his sword. He put his hands up and moved back towards Minasel, as she looked at him confused. The orc laughed and stepped towards Faronion and Minasel, taking careful and slow steps. 

“Very wise of you to give up so easily,” the orc laughed, pointing the blade of his battle axe to them.

Faronion stayed silent and held his hands in the air.

“My comrade was right about you two,” the orc grinned, “you are nothin’ more than weak, pathetic-”

Before the orc could finish, the group could hear a loud crack and then a snap to follow afterwards. The orc looked to the side to see a shadow starting to develop closer and closer to him. He looked up and saw a flaming tree falling towards him. Before the orc could even react, the tree crushed him, and sparks from the fire flew into the air. 

Faronion quickly grabbed Minasel’s hand and ran towards the exit of Lothlorien. They barely made it, when more trees started to fall and block the exit so no one could get in or out. The two captains stepped a few feet away from the once holy land of the elves, as they watched the entire area light up and glow with the brightest light the two have ever seen. Although being far away from the fire, they could still feel the heat roast their skin. Minasel breathed in then covered her nose real quick, gagging in the process. 

“Yuck! The stench of cooked orc fills the air!” Minasel gagged, causing Faronion to laugh at her.

“It does smell a little gross.” Faronion chuckled, having a thoughtful look on his face.

Minasel took a couple of seconds to compose herself then stood up straight and smiled at Faronion. She grabbed a hold of his shoulders and gave him a cheeky grin, which surprised Faronion.

“What you did back there…” Minasel smiled, sounding a little bit flustered, as if trying to find what words to say.

“W-what are you talking about?” Faronion asked, looking Minasel in the eyes, starting to stumble over his words.

“Saving me back there… I just… Oh Mahal! I can’t find the right words to say! I guess it can only be said through action!”

Before Faronion had time to react, Minasel grabbed onto the back of his neck, pulled him down really quick, and slammed her forehead against his. He felt like he had a rock thrown at his head. Faronion stumbled around then fumbled onto the ground. He laid on his back and looked up at the sky, feeling incredibly dizzy. Minasel looked down at him and gave him a very cocky smile, to his annoyance. 

“What was… that… for?” Faronion managed to choke out. 

“That? Do you not know?! It is a dwarf head-butt!” Minasel explained.

“I thought… you were… happy… I… saved you?”

“Oh I am very grateful for it! A dwarf head-butt is a sign of affection and appreciation! Of course, dwarves have thicker skulls than other races, which means it doesn’t hurt when they do it to each other!” Minasel gave Faronion a mischievous smirk, showing that she completely meant what she did.

“This is… torture…” Faronion groaned.

“Oh no, my dear friend! I gave you a very important gesture. No no, this is your punishment.”

“Wha- AGH!”

In a swift movement, Minasel brought her foot back and kicked Faronion in the side. Usually he would be fine, but, since being headbutted first, Faronion felt like his entire body was breaking down at the seams. This is the worst pain he felt in his entire life. Minasel leaned down and brought her lips close to his ear. 

“That was for destroying the elven holy lands.” Minasel whispered in Faronion’s ear, causing him to groan.

Minasel stood up straight and smiled, before sitting right next to Faronion and laying his head on her lap. She pet his hair and continued to watch the fire.

“It is all in good fun, Faronion,” Minasel grinned, “I will wait here with you until you recover and then we will be back on the path to our next destination! Got it?”

“You are the worst.” Faronion grumbled. 

The two captains watched Lothlorien burn to the ground, together, reflecting on the destruction they caused and where this may lead them in the future. 


	14. Chapter 13: Day in the Life of a Dark Lord

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> We have seen the adventures of Faronion and Minasel, but what does Agarhend do everyday?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This could be a filler chapter? I don't know, this is kind of a deep dive in Agarhend's character and what he is like when he isn't going after Faronion and Minasel.

It’s a new day in Mordor, although no one can really tell with the darkened skies that cover the land. Orcs are hard at work rebuilding towers and creating weapons, trying to prepare for an upcoming war that they are expecting to happen. Everyone was hard at work, all except for the sleeping elf up in the largest tower in Mordor. 

Agarhend slept in a darkened room at the top of the tower. There was no door, but a hatch that was hidden in the wooden door. There was a darkened wardrobe, a dark vanity with matching red cushioned chair, a bed with red velvet sheets covering it, a few small tables holding candles, and a large window that looked out the entirety of Mordor. In the bed, under the sheets and sandwiched in a large amount of pillows, lies the new dark lord, Agarhend. He wore a dark robe and had a little eye cover over his eyes. He slept, legs and arms sprawled out on the bed, and his mouth open, with a line of drool sliding down his cheek. He was indeed, fast asleep. 

Outside the window, an explosion could be seen, sending a group of orc bodies flying through the air. Their screams were loud and high pitched, almost blood curdling. At that moment, Agarhend woke up and sat up slowly. He took the eye cover off his eyes, looked around the room, then let out a long yawn and stretched. As he did so, the hatch on the floor opened up and an orc peeked his head into the room. Unlike most of his comrades, the orc wore a dark tunic with leggings, a long black cloak, and a short, dark green top hat, with what looks like a bite being taken out of the rim of the hat. 

“Good morning, my lord,” the orc said, his voice rough and scratchy, “Your breakfast is ready.” 

Agarhend blinked his eyes a couple of times and stared at the orc, blankly, “Uh… who are you?” 

“It’s me, my lord. Flep.”

“Never heard of you…”

“My lord… I have been working under you for a month now…” 

“Does not ring a bell.” 

“I’m the one who helps you make plans for the rebuilding of Mordor and calls you to food every day.” 

“I do not recall any of that.” 

“... I constantly comment and compliment you on your outfits...”

“Ah! Fleep! I remember you!” 

“It’s Flep, actually…” 

“Never mind that! I’ll be down in a short while!” 

Flep nodded at Agarhend before ducking down and closing the hatch back up. Agarhend spun out of his bed and immediately went to the window, to stick his head out. The smell of sulfur and ash fills the air, and the sound of metal against metal echoes throughout the entire land. Agarhend took a deep breath, taking in the sounds and smells of Mordor, and smiled. 

“GOOD MORNING, LOYAL SUBJECTS!” Agarhend yelled out to all the orcs. 

Some of the orcs grumbled to themselves, but some yelled back, “Good mornin’, sir!” 

Agarhend smiled wide and outstretched his hands to all the orcs, “I LOVE YOU ALL!”

Agarhend slipped back into his room and went straight to the wardrobe. He opened the two doors to the wardrobe and revealed a mass amount of clothes. From dress robes to armor, there seemed to be clothes of every occasion stuffed in that single wardrobe. Agarhend looked through every clothing piece, looking at the seams and putting it in the light, only to throw it onto the ground and go to the next piece. 

“No… no… unfinished… not the right shade… too warm…” Agarhend said to himself as he went through his clothes. 

Before Agarhend knew it, his wardrobe was empty and all of his clothes were scattered on the floor. The dark lord felt himself become increasingly more and more angry. His veins pulsed, his fists clenched, and he could feel his teeth grind together, until he let out a loud yell that echoed all throughout Mordor. He kicked around the clothes on his floor and started throwing random things around his room. The last thing Agarhend was able to throw was a small wooden table that sat at the side of his bed. He threw it against the wall and watched as it broke into many pieces. Flep then opened the hatch and looked at all the clothes and random broken objects that cluttered the floor. In the middle of it all, Agarhend stood, panting, shoulders tensed, and head hanging down. 

“Uh… my lord…” was all Flep could say, as he looked on at the mess, in shock. 

Agarhend’s angry expression quickly turned kind as he quickly went over to the hatch and pulled Flep into the room.

“Flop! Thank Melkor you are here!” Agarhend exclaimed, grabbing Flep by the arm.

“It’s Flep… and what happened here?” Flep asked, looking around.

“Oh, it’s just awful! I cannot find anything to wear!”

“Can’t find anything to wear? But you have so many clothes, my lord!”

“I know, but none of these are good enough to wear today. I am cursed! So many clothes, but nothing to wear!”

“My lord, there must be something you could wear today. Why not wear the armor you usually wear?”

“I could… but I do not want to look like I am leaving to go and fight! Today is the day I actually work on some more battle plans and walk amongst my subjects. I was hoping to look more regal today instead of intimidating and bloodthirsty.” 

“In all honesty, my lord, no matter what you wear, you are still going to look intimidating to every orc here.”

“That’s rude! I am nothing to fear!”

“My lord… yesterday you sent an orc to his death, because he did not say anything when you sneezed…”

“He was being rude! My actions were completely reasonable!”

Flep rolled his eyes and started picking up Agarhend’s clothes, one at a time, and put them away. He reached under the bed and pulled out a long dark grey, sparkling dress robe with long sleeves. Agarhend immediately saw this and grabbed it from Flep’s grasp and examined it. Despite how dark it is in Mordor, the fabric still shimmered when moved around. Agarhend smiled and held the robe close.

“Fetch, you are a genius! This is exactly what I am looking for!” Agarhend exclaimed.

“Again, my lord, it's Flep…” Flep corrected Agarhend, before being shooed to the hatch and having it opened for him.

“Yes, yes, just get out of the room so I can change. I’ll be down shortly.”

Agarhend shut the hatch behind Flep and, finally, got ready for the day. He dressed in the grey robe with matching shoes and pants. For accessories, Agarhend put on a long black cape, that wrapped around his arms, and his signature spiked black crown. He spun around his room and admired his movements. 

“Ah,” Agarhend said, giving a proud and egotistical smile to him, “I am dressed well enough to make the Valar jealous. I guess that will have to do.”

Agarhend opened up the hatch and left the room, walking down a spiral staircase. He passed floors full of orcs training, orcs doing alchemy, and some floors just had orcs relaxing or resting after being healed. Once going down a few more flights of stairs, Agarhend turned onto a floor and entered into a dining room. The room was generally empty but with a long wooden table and a black throne like chair at the very end. The table was bare with only a single glass placed near the chair. It was full of some sort of brownish liquid, which Agarhend immediately knew was a glass full of dirty water. He would try to stay clear of drinking that for as long as possible. The entire chair was made of stone, except for the red cushions on the seat and back of it. Agarhend sat down in the chair and waited patiently for his meal. In the matter of seconds, Flep walks in with another orc, who is holding a plate of food. 

“Breakfast is served, my lord,” The orc said, before setting the food down in front of Agarhend and walking out.

“Finally! I am starving!” Agarhend exclaimed, before taking a spoonful of food and taking a bite.

Suddenly, all the color leaves Agarhend’s face. The food had a very bitter taste, but there was also something else. It was like a thick stew, but it felt more slimy and it was full of random shapes with many different textures. Some of the things were hard as rock, while others were very soft and easy to chew. As he swallowed, Agarhend could feel the mixture, which felt a bit slimy, slide slowly down his throat. It was absolutely grotesque. 

Agarhend coughed and held onto his throat, before patting down the table and grabbing the cup full of dirty water. He drank it, taking down big gulps, then slammed the empty glass on the table. The flavor of the water was also gross to him, but it was not as bad as the food he just ate. Looking down at the plate, Agarhend could see what he just ate, even though he was not quite sure what it exactly was. The substance covered the entire plate, very thick and very unnatural. It was a swamp green color, and Agarhend could see that there were little lumps buried inside it, although he was not sure what they were, and he rather not find out. The closer Agarhend examined it, he was able to notice little bubbles forming from the substance then popping and disappearing. He also swears that he saw one of the lumps start moving or twitching a bit. 

“Disgusting,” Agarhend grumbled, “absolutely disgusting. Fleck, I need you to make some notes of recommendation.”

“Uh, about what, my lord?” Flep asked, hesitantly taking out a quill and small book of blank paper, held together with twine.

“This food has to change, it is not healthy nor is it safe. The cooks need to either be fired or need proper training in the art of culinary. Also, this sad excuse for water! You can hardly see through it!”

“Is that not what water is supposed to look like?”

“Of course not! Water is supposed to be clean! I want our source of water to be either cleaned or for an entirely different source to be found! We cannot live like this! We are not animals!”

“Alright, my lord. I will make sure these recommendations are taken care of.”

“Good.”

Agarhend walked around the tower, with Flep scurrying at his side. Agarhend strutted around, hands behind his back and admiring everything around him. 

“You know what I want, Flick?” Agarhend asked, keeping his eyes forward.

“First off, it’s Flep,” Flep corrected slightly, “but what do you want, my lord?”

“I want to take over Middle Earth. Make it bend at my knee and make everyone sorry. Make them feel the pain I went through and finally get my revenge on Lord Elrond. He may be gone, never to return to this land, but that does not mean I cannot bring down suffering onto his family.”

“Right you are, my lord.” 

“And those soldiers, for messing with my plans, they will receive the worst suffering of their life.”

“Will you kill them?”

“That is a little too humane, don’t you think? I want them to be in so much pain, that they would want to die, but I, of course, will not let them.”

“You surely are evil, my lord.” 

“Thank you, but, in order to go with my plan, I need an army, but not just any army, a civil army. Because these orcs are not just my servants, these are my subjects, and I only want what is best for them. They not only need to work hard, defend my army, and rebuild their home, but they must also have the edicate of a normal being. It is important after I take over.”

“I see, my lord, but I must ask, what will you do with all the other citizens of Middle Earth and their rulers?”

“Torture them, of course. They will work as servants and will bow to me!”

Agarhend lets out a strong, evil laugh as he walks into a room full of alchemy equipment, from desk to random ingredients. He walks over to one the desks and starts mixing ingredients together watching as the liquid in the alchemy set turns an array of different bright colors. Flep rocks back and forth on his heels until he sees Agarhend’s diary sitting neatly between a stack of books. He moves over to the stack, slides the book out, and begins reading through it. One part that caught his eyes was the passage containing the instructions about bring back to life and about the dark warlords.

“I don’t understand, my lord,” Flep mumbled, “If you could bring back any dark lord and warlord, why have you not done so?”

In a swift movement, Agarhend leaned over and slammed the book shut in Flep’s hands. He then took the book and placed it on a high shelf, out of reach from anyone besides himself. Agarhend quickly put away all his alchemy things then turned back to Flep, with a displease look in his eye.

“You don’t get it do you?” Agarhend asked, tilting his head to the side.

“I do not see the issue with it. You could grow in power.” Flep explained.

“Apparently you did not read the fine print. A soul for a soul. If we bring back a dark soul, the soul of the hero that slayed them also has to come with. Whatever dark soul is brought back will be slaughtered if the hero is there to stop them a second time.”

“But there will be so many of them. Surely a bunch of powerful warlords and Sauron himself could take down a bunch of humans.”

“Did it not occur to you that it is not just some petty humans or dwarves that could be brought back? Elves will be brought back. Powerful elves with valar like abilities could be brought back and we would all be vanquished in the matter of seconds.” 

Agarhend stood in front of Flep’s face with a serious look, but then that seriousness turned into a grin and he walked out of the alchemy area, dragging Flep behind him.

“Trust me, Fleet,” Agarhend smiled, “I know what I am doing and this is our safest route.”

“It’s Flep, my lord.” Flep grumbled.

“Oh, Fledge! Always a joker, you are!”

Agarhend laughed, as he walked into his throne room, and made his way to a dark, stone throne. The back of the throne has spikes attached to and a skull overhead. Agarhend sits down and grins, imagining a bunch of enslaved races, from hobbits to elves, all bowing to him, a lord of Middle Earth. He lets his imagination run wild until Flep snaps him back to reality. 

“My lord,” Flep says, “there are some orcs here that wish to see you and discuss matters.”

“Oh, yes,” Agarhend says, jolting up and looking around, just to slouch back into his throne, “please bring them in.”

Flep nodded and the first orc was called in. He was a scrawny orc and completely naked, with only a loincloth on, and he staggered around the floor. Two orc guards helped steady the orc, so he did not fall over.

“This one recently came out of the ground, my lord,” explained Flep, “and we were wondering where we should put him.”

“I see,” Agarhend mumbled to himself, analyzing the orc, “do you want to fight, young orc?”

“No, sir. I am not much the fighting type.” answered the orc, looking up at Agarhend on his throne. 

“What about building? Are you able to build?” 

“No, sir. I am too small to lift those large blocks.”

“Can you mine for materials?”

“I don’t know what materials to mine for.”

“That’s odd, there must be something you are good at.”

“Sorry, sir. I am not a very useful orc. Basically worthless.”

“Do not say such a thing! We of course need an orc like you… for what I am not sure, but we still need you!”

Agarhend pondered a bit then snapped his fingers and pointed at the orc.

“Can you cook, orc?” He asked.

“I have never done such a thing in my life.” the orc answered.

“Well, we are in need of more chefs in Mordor. Someone who can help feed the other orcs. You will be trained to do such a thing, if you are willing.”

“I would appreciate that, my lord.”

“Excellent. Guards! Take this orc to get a new set of clothes and give him an explanation of the rules here!”

The two orc guards nodded at Agarhend and led the new orc out of the throne room. As they walked out, another orc walked in. This orc was a bit plump then the last orc and was wearing a dirty shirt and pants with a band around his head, holding many candle wicks. He had a bit of an overbite and smudged and scraped all over his face. The orc saluted to Agarhend and puffed out his chest.

“News from the miners, my lord!” the miner orc said, his voice very deep and basey.

“And what might that be?” Agarhend asked.

“We found plenty of silver and gold in the mines, my lord! We picked through till there was none left! We also found more iron to make a new batch of swords for the army, my lord!”

“Excellent work. I give my regards to your group.”

“Thank ya, my lord, but could those regards be turned to food? My group ran out of rations some days ago and have been very hungry.”

“Of course, I will make sure the guards bring enough food for your group for the work you have done.”

“Thank ya, my lord! Much appreciation!”

The orc miner saluted to Agarhend once again and ran out the doors. Agarhend sighed and leaned back in his throne, feeling content.

“Another satisfied orc.” Flep states, writing in his book.

“You know Flint,” Agarhend sighs, “I feel completely at ease today.”

“It’s Fle-”

“I mean, these first two problems were so easy to solve. I feel like today is going to be an easy day. No destruction in Mordor, no orc death, and no pesky soldiers.”

As Agarhend said this, an orc, wearing a roughed up chest plate and a dented helmet, runs into the throne room, stumbling over his own two feet. He stopped in front of the throne and leaned over, trying to catch his breath.

“My… lord…” the orc huffed and puffed.

“Why did you run so fast? What is the matter?” Agarhend asked, rising from his throne.

“FIRE!” the orc screamed then passed out on the floor of the throne room. 

Agarhend’s eyes grew large and sprinted out of the throne room, with Flep following behind. They ran outside to see a group of orcs gathered around a tower that is now glowing with fire. The tower was being built and was going to house more rooms, but now that hard work is gone, with pieces of it breaking off and falling to the ground. Orcs ran back and forth, carrying buckets of water and throwing it on the tower, trying to extinguish the fire. Suddenly, the tower makes a loud creaking sound, which causes all the orcs to freeze up and slowly back away from the tower. It then, starting from the top, slowly starts collapsing, falling to the ground in a cloud of dust. The orcs stare at the wreckage, mumbling to themselves about the disaster that took place, then all walk away to continue their work, leaving Agarhend and Flep to look upon the destroyed tower, in shock. 

Agarhend stands for a while, then falls to his knees and covers his face. He makes long whining noises, which caught the attention of Flep and immediately told the orc follower to comfort his lord. Flep places a hand on Agarhend’s shoulder and patted it a few times.

“There there, my lord…” Flep says while patting Agarhend’s shoulder.

“So much material was used to build that tower” Agarhend whined.

“It is going to be alright, my lord.”

“And now it is all gone!”

“Do not worry, my lord. We can build a new one.”

“But that is going to take forever! Between gathering the materials and the time it takes to build a tower, we are expecting a couple of months for another to be built! I DO NOT HAVE THAT KIND OF TIME!”

“Calm down, my lord. We could send more orcs to the mine to find what is needed.”

Agarhend groaned, stood up, and jerked around to stomp back into his tower. As he turned, he immediately came face to face with a heavily armored orc and another orc, who was covering his left ear with both of his hands. The heavily armored orc was tall and bulky, His armor was standard orc armor, but it seemed to be scraped a bit. For armor, he had a dented helmet, a chest plate, tattered gauntlets, and normal boots, and he was holding a gigantic war hammer. The other orc, on the other hand, was fairly small, had no weapons, and only wore a chest plate.

“News from outside, my lord.” The armored orc stated, his voice deep and raspy.

“Oh good, please tell me you have some good news!” Agarhend begged.

“Uh… well… we found the soldiers…”

“Did you kill them?!”

“... A group of orcs found them walking out of the ruins of Lothlorien… the entire forest was on fire…”

“Yes I see, but were they killed?!”

The armored orc stood there, silently, and looked down at his hands. Agarhend’s face turned red and teeth clamped together.

“ANSWER THE DAMN QUESTION! Agarhend ordered. 

“... This was the only survivor…” the armored orc said, gesturing the small orc, holding his ear.

Agarhend stomped over to the small orc and held him by the front of his chest plate, red eyes piercing in the orc. 

“You… you are supposed to kill them onsight!” Agarhend snapped.

“THAT SPAWN BIT MY BLOODY EAR OFF! DO YOU REALLY THINK I COULD OF DONE ANYTHING!” The small orc snapped back, but even louder and very agitated, his voice very nazzily. 

Agarhend let go of the small orc and blinked at him. Both Agarhend and Flep stared at the orc, confusion painting over their faces. 

“I beg your pardon?” Agarhend asked.

“WE WERE ATTACKING THOSE SOLDIERS AND THAT DISGUSTING HALFBREED JUMPED ONTO MY SHOULDERS AND TORE MY EAR STRAIGHT OFF WITH HER TEETH!” The small orc shouted again, for some reason even more angry than before. 

“Which soldier was it?” Flep asked.

“The girl soldier! LOOK WHAT SHE DID TO MY EAR!” 

The small orc removed his hand to reveal a large gash where his ear is supposed to be. The wound has not healed, so it continues to spurt and drip blood. Both Flep and the other orc groaned in disgust, but Agarhend simply turned around and walked back to the tall, black, metal tower that holds his throne. 

“My lord,” Flep called out to Agarhend, “where are you going?”

“Fools!” Agarhend yelled, “You are all fools! I wanted a day where I could relax and join myself, but I cannot even have that! THOSE SOLDIERS MUST DIE AND I GUESS I HAVE TO BE THE ONE TO ACTUALLY DO IT, BECAUSE EVERY ORC HERE SEEMS TO BE TOO INCOMPETIANT TO DO SO!”

As Agarhend walks into the tower, loud crashes and the screams of orcs could be heard inside the tower. 


	15. Chapter 14: Darkness in the Daughter of Stars

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Faronion and Minasel go into Mirkwood, but Minasel seems a bit more excited then she should be about a creepy abandoned forest.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: This chapter contains GRAPHIC DEPICTIONS OF VIOLENCE and GORE reader discretion is advised  
> ~~~  
> Yes this is another long chapter! Hope you all enjoy!

In a vast grassy field, Faronion and Minasel walk, side by side, to their next destination. They talk amongst themselves, with Faronion walking on the left side and Minasel on the right, with their weapons sheathed. They seem to be a bit relaxed, as they stroll through the tall, light brown grass. In the middle of their conversation, Minasel starts to gag and cough, then makes a disgusted face.

“I can still taste orc blood in my mouth,” Minasel says, cringing and spitting to her right, into a patch of grass. 

“That’s your own fault,” Faronion replies, rolling his eyes, “you’re the one who ripped off that orcs ear.”

“Hey, you can’t fault me when it is a helpful strategy. There are so many nerves in the ear that biting it off causes the orcs to become disarmed and vulnerable. They will just fall onto the ground and start screaming and twitching, so you can easily land a blow on them!”

“But he got away! You bit off his ear and didn’t even kill him!” 

“Eh, he will die of his injuries.”

Suddenly, the two captains stop dead in their tracks, and look on at the mass amount of dark forest that lay before them. Trees were dying, dead leaves covered the ground, and remnants of spider webs floated in the air. There were some statues, but the years of disarray and neglect has caused them to crumble and be wrapped with vines. The path is the same way, with cracks in the stone and little shards of grass poking out to greet newcomers. 

“Mirkwood,” Faronion mumbled to himself, “the past home of the wood elves. Another kingdom completely abandoned.” 

Cold air blew out from in the forest and against Faronion’s face, causing him to shiver. He remembers the old tales of this place, how some people said that it was cursed, how it lay in darkness, and how the friendliness of elves would not be found here, like what you would find in Rivendell and Lothlorien. So many people have lost their way trying to navigate Mirkwood and some have never made it out. This is probably due to the fact that these people were imprisoned for trespassing into the elven king’s land. At least Faronion knew that the elven king was gone from this land and he was not alone on this journey. If he gets lost, then at least he is lost with Minasel. 

Faronion looked over at Minasel, to find her, not looking at Mirkwood with a sense of dread, but with wonder in her eyes. Minasel looked up and down at the trees, examining their height. She then looked on into the forest, feeling a rush of excitement build up in her veins. Faronion swore that he saw a billion little stars appear in her eyes, twinkling in the darkness of her dark brown eyes. Faronion turned away and gave a long sigh, trying to figure out how they are going to navigate this forest.

“Alright,” Faronion began, “the best thing for us to do is to follow the path at all times. The forest is dense and a bit of a mess, so we have to be careful and make sure we are on the right path. I remember reading something about some of the water sources here, so, just to be sure, do not touch any of the water. Also, the best way for us to get through this is if we stick-”

Before Faronion could finish, Minasel immediately bolted into the forest at high speed. She ran with a large grin on her face and with determined strides. She suddenly stopped and looked around the forest, far away from Faronion, to the point where she looks like a little speck in his vision.

“-together…” Faronion said then sighed in defeat, knowing that his plan would not be put into use and so they might get lost. 

“This way, Faronion!” Minasel shouted at him then ran to her left. 

Faronion groaned and ran after Minasel, trying to catch up to her. Right as Minasel would stop, and Faronion thought he got her, she would immediately take another turn and continue to run. Minasel became more and more excited, now swinging on trees and vines and running across the branches. There was a trench with a river covering the bottom, but Minasel, almost impulsively, jumped onto some branches and long tree roots and made it to the other side. Faronion followed behind, but he was a bit slower, feeling a bit tired from the chase. Minasel almost ran past a bed of red flowers with large petals and long stems, but she quickly stopped herself and picked a bouquet of them.

“These are perfect!” Minasel exclaimed, smiling and admiring the flowers.

“Minasel… where... are you going?!” Faronion yelled at Minasel, dragging behind and trying to catch his breath.

“We are almost there, Faronion!” 

Minasel continued to run, full of energy and not once stopping to catch her breath. She kept running until they reached the two doors that would lead them into the actual kingdom of Mirkwood. The stone bridge that led to the two great doors had some cracks and small pieces were chipped away, and the doors themselves were just leaning on the entrance, broken off from their place and leaving a gape, so visitors could get through. Minasel stopped, looked both ways, then took a quick left, away from the bridge. 

She quickened her pace, then she saw what she was looking for. A large tree with a sign, made of wood, in front of it. The sign is attached to a small wooden post, which has been impaled to the ground. Minasel ran and sled on her knees, stopping in front of the sign. The sign was covered in vines, much to Minasel’s displeasure, so she started to rip and cut them away. While she was doing that, Faronion ran up behind her and leaned over, hands on his knees, trying to catch his breath. 

“Minasel,” Faronion huffed, “you did not… listen to me! This place is… dangerous! Why did you run away like-?!”

When Faronion lifted up his head, ready to shame Minasel for her impulsive actions, he noticed why she ran away. On the wooden sign, there are words engraved into it:

_Here Lies, Tauriel, Captain of Mirkwood_

_Great Leader and Friend to All_

_May the Valar Take Her to the Land of Rest_

Minasel glared over at Faronion, making sure he kept his mouth shut. Faronion’s lips were pressed tight together, so Minasel that he was not going to say anything. She turned back to the sign and gave a big smile.

“Hello nana!” Minasel exclaimed, “It’s me, your daughter, Minasel! Sorry I have not visited you in such a long time. Lord Thranduil did not want me in his realm, and then, when he left, I became very busy, but I am here now! They really should have taken better care of you, nana, no captain should be treated like this.” 

Minasel gestures to the vines, then quickly picks up the flowers and puts them in front of the sign, “These are for you, nana! I was hoping to make you a flower crown with these and dress you up a little bit.”

Minasel quickly went to work making a flower crown, Faronion watched from behind, examining as she weaved stems together and bundled the flowers up. Minasel slowly looked over at Faronion and quickly turned back the sign.

“I almost forgot!” Minasel exclaimed, “This is my friend, Faronion Elessar! Faronion, this is my mother, Tauriel.”

“Oh, uh,” Faronion stutters, rubbing the back of his head, “nice to finally meet Minasel’s mother.”

“Bow you, fool!” Minasel hisses at Faronion, jabbing her elbow into his knee, “You are speaking to royalty!”

“Ow! I mean… pleasure to meet you, your majesty!” Faronion says, bowing to the sign.

Minasel nodded in approval and went back to working on the flower crown, “Faronion and I are going on an adventure together. We have to stop this evil lord from rebuilding Mordor and taking over Middle Earth with his orc army. It has been very scary, and we have had a lot of life or death situations, but we make it out alive every time, so you don’t have to worry.”

Minasel finishes the crown and lets it lay off the edge of the sign. Minasel sighs and traces her fingers over the engraved letters.

“A lot has changed, nana.” Minasel sighs, looking at the ground, “Every since the ring was destroyed, more and more elves have left Middle Earth, and that means they left you here, alone. I have discussed with Stonehelm about maybe moving your body back to Erebor, and he might actually think about it. Two beings of different races being together is now deemed more acceptable now then it was before. They might actually move you back to Erebor and give your own tomb! Does that not sound amazing! You will finally be reunited with adad again!”

Minasel feels tears streaming down her face as she stares at the sign. She leans in and kisses the top and lays her head on it.

“I love you, nana,” Minasel whispers, whipping her tears away. 

Faronion watched the heartfelt encounter, before looking around and realizing how dark the forest has become. They must have been running around in Mirkwood for so long that night has fallen. The forest, while already quite scary, has turned even darker, giving off a very eerie look. Some structures, that were once very clear, have lost their detail, looking more like shadows and creatures from the unknown. Faronion jolted back to reality, seeing Minasel standing in front of him, touching his shoulder and smiling at him. 

“Come with me,” Minasel whispers, “I want to show you something.”

Minasel runs up to the tree of her mother’s grave, and starts climbing up, swinging on the branches and throwing herself up. Faronion walked up the tree, gave a quick bow to the grave, then started climbing up the tree himself. The two balanced on branches and jumped up onto higher levels, making their way to the very top of the tree. Faronion was the last to make it up, immediately greeted by Minasel, who was looking up into the sky and standing at the edge of a branch. From where they were, they could see the top of every tree in mirkwood, and they could even see miles and miles of fields and landscape. Faronion turned around and could see the Lonely Mountain, itself, standing in all its glory. Minasel walks over to Faronion and pulls him up on a branch next to the one she is standing on. 

Minasel points up to the sky, which causes Faronion to look up, as well. The sky is completely covered in stars, with the bright light of the moon, which shines down on the two of them. Faronion looks around, then turns back to Minasel.

“You wanted to show me the stars?” Faronion asks, tilting his head to Minasel. 

“Yes... but also no.” Minasel answers, smiling at Faronion.

Minasel balances on the branch and twirls around, almost dancing in a way, “The stars tell stories and hold the secrets. Each constellation is named after an important deed or family line. For example, you see that constellation right there?”

Minasel goes over to Faronion and traces a pattern of stars in front of him, as they look up. The way she is tracing them reminds Faronion of the shape of a crown. Faronion nods, causing Minasel to step away from him and smile.

“That constellation right there is called, ‘Durin’s Crown’.” Minasel explained, “It is named after my family; the Durins! Now you hardly see any new stars come out. Any star that could be discovered has already been discovered! However, when I started my study on stars and the night sky, I found something pretty incredible! You see those two stars right under ‘Durin’s Crown’?”

Minasel goes over close to Faronion again and points at two stars next to the constellation she drew out for him before. The two stars seem to be close together, closer than how the other stars lay, but not exactly touching. 

“Yeah, I see them.” Faronion answers.

“Those stars are new,” Minasel smiles, “I checked all the books I have and looked through every chart, but there is no mention of these stars' existence!”

Minasel looks up at the sky, then looks down giving a sad smile, “I like to believe that those two stars are my parents, together in the afterlife and watching over me. I know you think I am strange to say such a thing, but it brings me some sort of hope.” 

Faronion gently touches Minasel’s shoulder and gives her a slight smile, “I do not think it’s strange at all. The stars are probably your parents way of looking after you, even when they are not in this world.”

Minasel smiles back at Faronion, then turns around and pulls him into a tight embrace. Faronion smiles and places a hand on her head and strokes the fabric of her hood.

“And you know,” Faronion continues, “I think you will get your mom moved back to Erebor. I will even fight Stonehelm to make it happen immediately.” 

“Thank you, Faronion,” Minasel giggles, cheek pressed against Faronion’s chest.

Faronion smelt of smoke and fire, the strongest stench you could ever imagine, but Minasel did not mind. In a way, Minasel found it sort of soothing, and she probably did not smell any better herself, so she could not complain. With all the orcs she slew over the past few weeks, she smelt of blood and guts, but Faronion did not mind this at all and just continued to hold her and stroke the hood of her cloak. 

Their touching moment seemed to be ruined, when they could hear the rustle of leaves and the clashing of swords. Minasel and Faronion opened their eyes to see that the tops of the trees were swaying back and forth, in small groups, and they seemed to be making their way towards the tree the two captains were on. Minasel and Faronion could feel that there was something wrong, and slowly made their way down the tree, carefully stepping on each branch, so they wouldn’t make a sound. The farther they made it down the tree, the clearer they could see a group of five orcs, wearing nothing but ragged brown pants, boots, and leather straps that crossed over their chest, grouped up by the tree. Minasel and Faronion stayed on a branch close to the ground so they could see the orcs, but also up far enough where they were cloaked in darkness. From where they were, the two soldiers could hear the orcs talk.

“I swear,” the first orc growled, “I saw those two rats run by and come over here!”

“I think you are lying to us!” the second orc snarled, pointing his spear at the first orc.

“I am not! I swear I saw them!” 

At this point, the first two orcs were growling and snarling at each other, pointing the blades of spears at each other’s throats. They planted themselves in the ground, ready to strike if one decides to attack, but then a third orc butted in. This orc was much bigger than the rest and carried a horn around his neck which is used to call for reinforcements. This third orc placed each hand on each of the two orc’s faces and pushed them apart, causing the two orcs to fall down. 

“Quit your yapping!” the third orc snapped at his group, “These kids are dangerous, so we can’t be too careful.” 

“He’s right,” the fourth orc pipped in, “remember what happened in Lothlorien! All of those orcs, slaughtered and burned alive!” 

“And that was one of our bigger groups!” The fifth orc added in, “We don’t know what else those two are capable of.”

The first and second orc groaned and moved away from each other, almost pouting as they stomped away. The second orc went over to the tree Minasel and Faronion were hiding in and immediately saw Tauriel’s grave. He examined it for quite awhile, then snickered and turned to his comrades. 

“Look over here fellas,” the second orc called out, “It’s an elf grave!”

The group orcs quickly went over to the second orc and gathered around the wooden sign.

“It IS an elf grave!” exclaimed the first orc.

“You hardly see any of those around, especially with them engraved like this.” the third orc said, stroking his chin in a thoughtful manner. 

“Looks like this elf was once a captain of the guards.” the fifth orc said, reading over the engravings.

“And someone seemed to have put a peace offering for this elf,” the fourth orc added, pointing at the flower crown, hanging on the side of the sign.

The orcs looked amongst one another and grinned, their faces turning sinister. Minasel looked over at the orcs and the grave, planted in her and Faronion’s hiding spot, eyes becoming wider and full of fear.

“What are they doing?” Minasel whispered quietly to herself.

Faronion looks at Minasel and moves closer to her, ready to stop her from running out immediately and blowing their cover. The orcs slowly walk closer to the sign, eyeing it up as if they were predators ready to kill their next victim.

“Poor elf,” the first orc cooed, mockingly, “gone too soon.”

“Such a shame that this elf could not see what else the world has to offer,” the fourth orc whimpered, acting as if he was going to cry.

Suddenly, the third orc kicked the sign, causing the wooden post that held it to lean to the side. Both Faronion and Minasel flinched, surprised at what just happened.

“Whoops,” the third orc snickered, “looks like I accidentally kicked it.”

“Here, let me help you straighten it out,” the fifth orc said, as he walked over and kicked the sign from behind, so it is leaning forward now. 

“You two are doing it all wrong! Let me help!” the first orc stepped in and kicked the sign from the opposite side of where the third orc was. 

The first, third, and fifth orc began to repeatedly kick the sign, laughing maniacally as if they were playing some sort of game. The second orc then went over and picked up the flower crown Minasel made and tightened his grip on it, while snickering to himself. He then grabbed two ends of the crown and pulled it part, laughing as petals floated all around him onto the ground. The second orc then proceeded to stomp on them, almost doing a dance as he watched the red petals wither beneath his feet. The fourth orc pulled out a flask, opened it up, and started pouring it on the spot where the burial place should be at. The liquid inside was yellow and foul smelling, being strong enough that Faronion and Minasel could smell it from where they were. The fourth orc laughed as he poured this liquid on the ground.

“All for the great elf captain,” The fourth orc shouted, which caused the other orcs to repeat him and laugh with one another.

The sign was breaking apart, with little wooden pieces flying everywhere, and the once beautiful red flower crown Minasel made was nothing more than just flower petals on the ground. Faronion looked on with horror at how cruel these orcs can be, but, as he turned to see how Minasel was doing, he realized how badly she was taking this destruction. Minasel’s chest, although covered in armor, was moving up and down, really frantically. Her eyes were very large, and they seemed to vibrate a bit as they darted quickly from each scene of destruction. Faronion could hear her breath, becoming very heavy and a little shaky. Her hands twitched and shook as she held onto the branch. Minasel closed her eyes and shook her head lightly, the word ‘no’ forming on her lips.

Suddenly, as if a switch was pulled, Minasel opened her eyes and immediately became still. Faronion knew that something was not right. There was a light in Minasel’s eyes, but it was dark and menacing. Her lips were pressed shut and her eyebrows were a bit furrowed, giving a slightly angry look on her face. Her hands relaxed as she stood up onto the branch. She slowly made her way to the edge of the branch and looked down, seeing the orcs right under her.

“Minasel?” Faronion whispered, concerned about what was happening to her. 

Before he could do anything to stop her, Minasel hopped off the branch and landed right behind the orcs, back to them, bent at the knee, and hands on the ground. The orcs heard her land and turned around to see what it was. Minasel swayed as she got up, as if she had no sense of balance and each side of her body was weighted. She then turned around to face them, head tilted to the side, eyes empty and soulless. 

The orcs looked at each other and smirked. Then the fifth orc stomped over to Minasel, sword at his side.

“Well well well,” the fifth orc snarled, “if it isn’t a little rat ready to play our-”

Before he could finish his sentence, Minasel kicked at the orc’s open kneecap, causing him to drop his weapon and fall to his knees, all while screaming in agony. His knee was completely broken in to, with the skin being ripped open and blood spurting out. Minasel then trudged over to the fallen orc, grabbed both sides of his head, and effortlessly spun it all the way around, creating a loud cracking sound. The four remaining orcs looked at the body of their comrade as it fell to the ground, then slowly looked at Minasel, who slowly grabbed her sword and held it in her hand. She did not bring it up, as if she was going to fight, but just let the blade hit the ground. The orcs quickly got their weapons ready and made their way to Minasel, rage and determination in their eyes. Minasel made her way to them, as well, swaying as she walked and letting the blade of her sword drag against the forest floor. 

The second orc was the first to run full speed towards Minasel, spear ready to stab her straight through her chest, but Minasel quickly jumped over him and stuck a landing on his shoulders, stabbing her sword straight through his head, then proceeded to jump off, and decapitate the second orc. The first orc did not have much luck either when he ran to avenge the second orc with his own spear. Minasel swung her sword up and slashed the first orc’s throat, causing him to choke and fall to the ground, twitching. Minasel stood on top of the orc and continued to stab his head with her sword, until the fourth orc ran up, ready to hit her with his warhammer. Minasel stuck the sword into the body of the first orc and swiftly kicked the fourth orc into a tree. Before this orc had time to react and attack again, Minasel ran up to him, grabbed the knife in her boot, and continuously stabbed the orcs head, watching as his lifeless body fell to the ground. Even though he was already dead, Minasel continuously stomped on his head, observing as the blood splattered everywhere around her. 

Suddenly, Minasel stopped and slowly turned her head to the third orc, head twitching and face splattered with blood. The third orc was trembling, back against the large tree where Minasel’s mother’s grave was in complete ruins. Minasel made great strides as she made her way to the third orc, while he abandoned his weapon and shivered as he tried to get the horn from around his neck. He was able to do so, but when he went to blow it and call for help, the orc stopped and felt a great pain in his chest. He looked down to see that Minasel had driven her right hand through his bare chest and to his internal organs. Minasel grabbed a hold of something and pulled it out, causing the orc to drop dead instantly. In Minasel’s hand, she held a darkened orc heart, still somewhat pulsing. She immediately threw it on the ground and started stomping on it frantically and angrily.

Faronion watched in horror at what he just saw. Never in his life has he seen Minasel act this way. He wanted to go down there and comfort her, but he was also afraid, which is something he never felt towards her before. Minasel then stopped and stared down at the crushed and splattered heart that lay before her. With a blank expression on her face, she moved away from the tree and went to grab her sword, which was still stuck in the first orc’s head. Faronion thought now would be the best time to move, and slowly made his way down the tree. He watched as Minasel took the sword out of the orcs head and sheathed it. She had her back to him and was swaying side to side. Suddenly she stopped and began laughing, but it was hysterical and crazed. There was no control over her laughter as she held her stomach and stumbled back and forth. Faronion slowly stretches his hand out to her, trembling and very afraid.

“M-Minasel?” Faronion stuttered, looking directly at his crazed friend.

Hearing Faronion, Minasel immediately stopped, grabbed her bow and an arrow, spun around, and shot at Faronion, aiming at his head. Luckily, Faronion ducked in time and the arrow hit the tree behind him. 

“Woah woah woah,” Faronion said, stumbling to his feet and waving his empty hands at Minasel, to show he does not mean any harm, “it is just me, Minas. You’re alright.”

Minasel kept her eyes locked on Faronion, grabbing for another arrow.

“It’s me,” Faronion repeated, trying to settle his breathing and sound less afraid, “you friend, Faronion. Do you remember me?”

Minasel eyes started to become softer as she lowered her hands, “F-Faronion?”

“Yes, it’s me. Faronion. We have been friends for the longest time, ever since I was little, remember? We do everything together.” 

Minasel slowly puts her bow away and stares at Faronion. Her eyes then start to dart around as she looks at the orc bodies and blood that has splattered the ground. Minasel shakes her head then places a hand on her forehead. 

“Oh mahal,” Minasel winced, observing everything, “Red Soldier.”

Faronion instantly remembers that name. That was the name given to Minasel by comrades and random civilians, when she would ruthlessly kill. So, this is what it looks like? When she snaps and lets darkness take over?

“I-I did not want to do this again,” Minasel stutters, observing all the blood and mutilated orc bodies, “I-I am supposed to be changed! I-I’m not like this! I swear! Faronion-!”

Minasel quickly turned to Faronion, which, after what just happened, caused Faronion to impulsively flinch and turn away from her. Seeing this, Minasel’s hands quickly moved to each side of her head and grasped onto her hair. She shook her head, and tears streamed down her face. 

“You're scared of me…” Minasel whined, “I can’t believe I scared my own friend!”

Minasel then dropped to her knees, holding her head and cried softly, “I’m sorry… I’m so so sorry… I failed… I was supposed to protect you… not scare you… or put you in danger… I’m a failure… a failure of a friend… and a failure of a daughter…”

Minasel looks at her mother’s destroyed grave, then sobs louder, holding her head tighter, and screams, “ _Lalkhûna… LALKHÛNA! LALKHÛNA! LALKHÛNA!_ YOU ARE NO DAUGHTER! YOU ARE NO FRIEND! YOU ARE A MONSTER! AN ABOMINATION IN THIS WORLD! YOU WILL NEVER CHANGE! NO MATTER WHAT YOU DO, THIS PART OF YOU NEVER LEAVES! YOU WILL FOREVER BE A MONSTER! NANA… ADAD… I HAVE FAILED YOU AS YOUR ONLY OFFSPRING! I AM A FAILURE TO OUR ENTIRE FAMILY! _”_

Minasel looked around, eyes full of tears, then she curled up into a ball, forehead against her knees, “Nana… Adad… why did you have to leave me here alone? Why couldn’t you have stayed a little bit longer? I don’t belong here, and I need you with me to help me through all of this. I can’t stand being without you any longer. I miss you… _Merin fifírun… Merin fifírun…”_

As Minasel continued to cry and scream, dark shadow figures started to appear everywhere, and, this time, Faronion could see them. The figures did not do much, but circled around and watched Minasel cry, their large glowing white eyes staring straight at her. Faronion walks over to the poor sobbing girl, walking through the shadowy figures, and places his hand on her back, listening to her sob sindarin words over and over again. Faronion shakes his head and sighs, rubbing Minasel’s back. 

“You are no monster, Minasel,” Faronion says, trying to comfort his friend, “you had a rough life and that may have affected you in many ways, but you are not a monster. You are the kindest, most generous person I have ever met, and what you went through and what you are going through right now just shows that you are also very strong and firm standing. I have never met your parents, but I am sure they would be proud of who you are as a person and would love to be with you as well. As for me, I could not ask for a better friend, and I was afraid that I may have lost you back there.”

Minasel shivered under his touch and continued to stutter out ‘ _Merin fifírun_ ’ over and over again. Faronion sighed and picked up Minasel, cradling her in his arms as she cried. 

“The day has been hard on you,” Faronion said, holding Minasel close to his chest, “I think it is best if you get some rest.”

Faronion glared at the shadows and carried Minasel away from the area, knowing exactly where to take her. He carefully made his way down the path and was brought back to the entrance of the Mirkwood kingdom, like where they were before they made that turn to Tauriel’s grave. He crossed the stone bridge and shimmied through the crack of the two great doors. The entire kingdom was barren and a bit dark, the only light coming from outside, but, since it was dark out, that did not help Faronion at all. Faronion groaned knowing that he couldn't hold a torch and carry Minasel at the same time and so would have to navigate the kingdom without any light. Faronion carefully made his way around the Mirkwood, kicking dead leaves from the path and cradling Minasel in his arms, who was still sobbing.

“ _Merin fifírun… Merin fifírun…”_ Minasel hiccuped, face snuggled in Faronion’s collarbone. 

The farther they got into Mirkwood, the more shadow figures started to appear. At this point, Faronion did not mind them, since their glowing white eyes helped him find his way around. Finally, after what felt like hours, Faronion finally found what he was looking for; the prison cells. There were many different levels, and each one had a wall lined with cells. Each cell had its door wide open, which made Faronion happy, because that meant he did not have to look everywhere for a key. Towards the back of the cells, Faronion could see a waterfall, rushing down to the abyss below. The sound of the water pouring out and hitting the ground below was sort of soothing, so Faronion knew this would be a good place for Minasel to rest. 

Faronion walks over to the closest cell near him and goes to lay Minasel inside, but, with fast reflexes, she stuck out her hand and held onto the side of the doorway, stopping them from going any further. Faronion looked at Minasel confused, as the poor girl held her head down. 

“What’s wrong, Minas?” Faronion asked.

“...no…” Minasel choked out, keeping her gaze away from Faronion. 

“No? You don’t want to go in this one?”

Minasel hesitated, but shook her head, and shifted in Faronion’s arms so she could look over his shoulder. She looked around a bit then pointed at something. Faronion turned around to see where she was pointing at and saw that it was another cell. This cell was a bit farther away from the one they were at and it lay in a spot where there were no other cells close by it. It was at a lower level and a set of about five stairs going up to a level a bit higher is located next to the cell itself. Faronion questioned why Minasel would want such a specific cell, but he could not complain, as long as she was happy and felt safe. 

Faronion carried Minasel down a small set of stairs and walked across the platform to the cell of her choosing. He went in and laid Minasel down on a stone block that was located in a corner closest to the doorway. Faronion thought it seemed strange, but, then again, they were in Mirkwood’s prison. This block must have been the bed from the prisoners. 

Minasel curled up on the stone, sniffling, and Faronion brought out his tinder box and started lighting the lanterns that still hung on the walls of the prison, hopping to bring some light into this dark kingdom. Suddenly, Faronion heard Minasel start yelling, and so he ran over to check on her. She was sitting up and frantically started patting her chest, all bug eyed. 

“Adad! Adad!” Minasel screamed, patting all over her body. 

“Minas, what is it? What are you looking for?” Faronion asked, looking very concerned.

Minasel then suddenly stopped and pulled something out from underneath her chest plate. In her hand, she held a small stone. It was smooth all the way around and coated with colors of black, green, and blue. On one side, there was an engraving in it, but Faronion could not make it out, so it must have been some sort of khuzdul. Minasel held it in her right hand and stroked it with her left. She traced the outline of the engraving ever so gently, a slight smile forming on her face. 

“Adad…” Minasel whispered, before tears formed in her eyes again and she laid back down on the stone block, holding the stone tight in her hand. 

With that Minasel began to cry again, which caused Faronion to frown. He hated seeing his friend like this, but there is nothing he can really do to make her happy right away. She has never cried in front of him, or in front of anyone for that matter, so maybe it is best to let her pour out all her emotions right now and not stop her. The most he can do for her right now is be there and be willing to help her if she asks for it. 

Faronion continues to light lanterns in Mirkwood’s prison, making sure that he kept the prison cell Minasel was at, in his line of sight. As they stayed in that area longer, more shadow figures started to appear in the room. They floated up and down stairs, floated into prison cells, and even eyed up the prison cell Minasel was in. Faronion, of course, butted in and told off each one of the figures.

“I know you would get away with a lot of things, when Minasel could just see you, but now I can see you and I say leave her alone! She has been through enough today and she does not need you making it worse!” Faronion scolded the shadow figures, but they just stared blankly at him as a response. 

Out of nowhere, Minasel cries turned into a song. She was still stuttering and hiccupping from how much she had cried, but she still tried to sing, stroking the stone in her hand and looking at it with a great amount of love and affection. Minasel sings:

_Hae ephadron_

_theri thaur_

_Îmri zaiza_

_Am na dhû ias_

_fîr i ambar_

_A trehil i ('alad 'lân uir tri 'wilith)_

Faronion watched Minasel sing from afar, realizing what this song is about. This is a song about her parents, a dwarf and an elf, and the love they shared for each other, precious and pure. This prison was where they met and fell helplessly in love with one another. That was the prison cell where a child was conceived, a daughter of the elf and dwarf’s own blood. They both sadly moved on to the next life, leaving their daughter behind, having to face hardships on her own, but she survives. Despite being left alone and abandoned by the elf and dwarf, the daughter still loves them dearly, even if she has never met them. 

Faronion watched as the shadows drew nearer to the opening of the cell Minasel’s was in. He was ready to jump in and protect her as she sang, but there seemed to be no need for it. The shadow figures move to the opening, but, instead of going inside, they simply circled and floated outside. It was like they had formed a protective barrier to keep anything bad from coming in. Faronion simply sat down at the edge of one of the platforms, and listened to Minasel sing those five lines over and over again until both grew tired and both fell asleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright, there are some translations that need to be made:  
> Lalkhûna- Khuzdul for "fool"
> 
> Merin fifírun- A rough sindarin translation of "I hope/wish to die"
> 
> Also that song is just the lyrics to feast of starlight, so that can be looked up easily.  
> ~~~~  
> I hope you all enjoyed this chapter and please feel free to like and comment about anything you enjoyed!


	16. Chapter 15: The Waters of Mirkwood

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In Gondor, Arwen is worried about her son's disappearance and wonders why Aragorn has shown no sign of worry. In Mirkwood, Faronion losses Minasel and is worried what might have happened during her breakdown the night before.
> 
> Also two new characters enter the story! Who are they!?

Aragorn and Arwen never worried about Faronion or Minasel going out on their own. Why would they? Faronion, although only becoming a captain of Gondor’s guards about a year ago, is a very skilled fighter and survivalist. He knows how to make simple fires and can track, which is useful in case he is out in the wild and runs out of food. As for Minasel, she has been fighting all her life, so she has a lot of experience in the field. There is no one they would trust more to be beside their son than her. As long as they were told where the two would be going, Aragorn and Arwen had nothing to fear. However, when Faronion’s horse, Cyng, came trotting up to the gate without Faronion and Minasel upon his back, the family could only expect the worst. 

For a couple of days, sadness and silence covered the Citadel of Gondor. The children were more silent than usual, trying to keep up hope that their brother would come back home soon, while Arwen would slowly walk down the halls and look into each room, remembering what Faronion would do in each specific room. Approaching his bedroom was the hardest for her, but, for some reason, Arwen would be pulled into the room. She looked around, looking at his untouched possessions. There was a wooden bed, with the head board pushed against the farthest wall from the door. The bed was made with small brown fur blankets and a large red blanket, with about five pillows placed nicely against the headboard. Each side of the bed stood small matching tables and matching lanterns, with there being two matching half circle windows on the wall with one being on each side of the bed. On the left wall there is a large display case full of swords, from one-hand to two-hand, and a wooden wardrobe pressed against the wall. On the right side sat a simple wooden desk with books stacked and scattered all over the top. Arwen looked around and noticed some tunics and coats scattered across the floor. Arwen hesitated, wanting to keep the room as Faronion left it, but her mothering instincts knew that they probably have not been properly washed in weeks and probably smell rotten. If she did not pick them up to be washed, the room might start to smell and then no one can walk in.

Arwen gave into her instincts and went on her hands and knees to pick up the dirty clothes. Of course she was right, Faronion’s clothes smelled with a mix of sweat and a very strange stench that Arwen could not name with just one word. It is as if Faronion was out on a hot day, and he decided to go into a pig pen and start rolling around in their filth. Arwen shook her head, trying to stop herself from throwing up at the thought of it, as she continued to pick up his clothes. As she reached down, Arwen noticed something underneath Faronion’s bed. It was dark underneath, so Arwen could not see what it exactly was, but she could see an outline of something somewhat flat and square shaped. Arwen put down the dirty clothes she was holding, crawled over to the bed, and reached underneath. As she touched the mysterious object, she could feel a thin layer of dust covering it, but, as she moved her finger across it to move the dust out of the way, she could soon feel something very soft, almost like it was made out of cotton. Arwen pulled the object out from under the bed, now sitting on the floor with her back against the bed, and saw that the object was a small, folded piece of blue cloth. She carefully unfolds the cloth and immediately starts to tear up.

It wasn’t just some random piece of fabric, it was a tiny cloak made for a child. The front tied with two pieces of twine and some parts of the fabric were fading from water damage. The seams were breaking apart, but the cloak was still intact. This was Faronion’s cloak when he was little. When he decided to become a soldier, Aragorn and Arwen were very excited and supportive of him, but they still worried a bit for Faronion, since he was still so young. Arwen remembers how Faronion would beg and plead for a cloak of his own, so he could be just like Minasel, so, one day, Aragorn and Arwen agreed. Arwen feels tears run down her cheek as she places her face into the small cloak.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

_ “Come along now, Faronion. Your father and I have a little surprise for you.” Arwen softly spoke, holding the hand of a small 8 year old Faronion. _

_ Faronion walked beside Arwen, holding onto her hand. His long, messy brown hair lay over his eyes, causing him to pull them back, just to have it fall again. Arwen noticed this, stopped walking, and quickly tied Faronion’s hair back into a low ponytail. Faronion’s bright blue eyes gleamed as he gave Arwen a big smile. _

_ “Thank you mama!” Faronion smiled, then started bouncing up and down, “What surprise do you and papa have for me?!”  _

_ “Well, you will have to go see your father and find that out, won’t you?” Arwen giggled, and continued to walk with Faronion until they entered the dining hall and saw Aragorn standing there, waiting for them.  _

_ Aragorn smiled at Faronion, his arms behind his back. Faronion quickly approached Aragorn and looked up to him. Aragorn cleared his throat and spoke in a proper manner, but still kept a warm, welcoming smile upon his face.  _

_ “My first born,” Aragorn began, “you have chosen the life of a soldier. It is a very dangerous life, full of trials and hardship, but your mother and I believe that you can pull through, but, of course, you may need to help. There are plenty of things you will need when you become a soldier, but I think this will be a good start.” _

_ Aragorn put his arms out in front of him and revealed to Faronion a small blue cloak. A large smile formed on Faronion’s face as he took the cloak and held it close. Faronion jumped into Aragorn’s arms, hugging him around the neck. _

_ “Thank you thank you! This is just what I wanted!” Faronion cheered. _

_ Aragorn gave Faronion a tight hug and a kiss on top of his head, as he leaned over to the ground. As he was set down, Faronion immediately opened the cloak up and tied it, so the fabric lay on his shoulder and the hood dangled in the back. Faronion moved the cloak around, watching as the cape of it flew behind him as he moved.  _

_ “This is perfect!” Faronion exclaimed, “Now I can be just like Minasel!” _

_ “Yes, you can, but that cloak has so much more meaning then that.” Arwen stated, hand folded, and expression getting a little bit more serious. _

_ Faronion looked at her, then turned around to see Aragorn, kneeling down on one knee and looking Faronion in the eye. Little Faronion approached his father, yet again, but noticed that his smile was gone and he was looking at him with utmost importance.  _

_ “Faronion,” Aragorn began, “you are not one race, but two races mixed together. One half is me, a dunedain, and the other is your mother, an elf. Even though they are disappearing slowly, there are still people out there who want to take people like you away and use you for their own desires, whether it be for fighting or hard labor.” _

_ “Why would they do that?” Faronion asked, clutching onto his cloak. _

_ “These people believe that halfbreeds, like you and Minasel, are the strongest type of race there could be. There are two types of traits from two different races in one person, and that is useful to them. And, since halfbreeds are hard to come by, these people can also sell them for a lot of money. You are safe in these walls, my son, but please promise me that, when you leave Gondor, you keep your hood up and cover your ears. We cannot bear to lose you.” _

_ Faronion looked at Aragorn with a sad look in his eyes. He hesitated, but soon pulled his hood up, covering his ears and some of his hair, and nodded. _

_ “I promise.” Faronion nodded, then ran into Aragorn’s arms for another hug, nuzzling his face into Aragorn’s neck. _

_ Aragorn held Faronion close to his chest, hand softly placed on the back of head, and slightly cradled him. _

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Out of the entire family, Aragorn was the only one to not act differently, and Arwen noticed this. He did not take any sort of break, but instead continued to work on matters in Gondor. While most of the family seemed to cut down on their meals, Aragorn ate the same amount as he would normally. Arwen found it especially strange that Aragorn was not doing any sort of grieving and acted as if everyone else was acting strange.

“The kids are especially quiet today. I wonder why? And why do you walk the halls in such a somber way?” Aragorn would ask Arwen, which made her feel frustrated.

_ Because our son is possibly dead. Do you not realize that? Do you not care?  _ Arwen would think to herself.

With another day gone and night filling each end of Middle Earth, Arwen tucks Eldarion and Aerloth in their beds, and soothes Celebsîr to sleep before laying her down in her cradle. Arwen then makes her way to her own room, dressed in a silver nightgown, and opens the door to find her husband, already dressed in his brown nightshirt and pants, sitting on one side of the bed and reading a small book with a red leather cover. Arwen walks over to the opposite side of the bed and lays down next to him underneath the covers. She lays on her back and looks over at him. Aragorn glances at her and closes the book, placing it on the small table near his side of the bed.

“I have a meeting tomorrow to talk to the townspeople.” Aragorn sighed, “I won’t be back for some time, so you can eat supper without me.”

“How dare you,” was all Arwen could say. 

Aragorn looked over at Arwen, confusion painted over his face.

“Pardon?” Aragorn asked. 

Arwen sat up and looked Aragorn in his eyes, “How dare you. Our son is possibly dead and you go on living life like nothing has happened. Like he does not exist. I have spent my time grieving and praying to the Valar that he might not be dead, that there is some hope that he is still alive, and you have looked at me like I am the strange one. Do you not care about your son?”

Arwen could feel the tears fill up her eyes and fall down her cheeks, as she bites her lip, trying to hold back her cries. Aragorn simply looked at her, an astonished look on his face, but then held her face in his hands and kissed her lips in a soft tender manner. Arwen kissed back, then closed her eyes as Aragorn placed his forehead against hers. 

“I see how you may think that, my love,” Aragorn whispered to her, “but I love our son more than anything, and if anything were to happen to him, I would be beyond heartbroken, but nothing has. I do not believe that our son has left this world. He is strong and courageous, with the best sense of survival anyone could imagine, and I know, no matter the situation, our son would be able to make it out alive. That’s just who he is and that is why I agreed for him to go on this journey in the first place. I just have too much faith in him.”

“I also have the same faith as you do, but I don’t understand,” Arwen said, opening her eyes to look at Aragorn, “how could you be so sure of this? His horse came back without him or Minasel, and I am sure Faronion would not just abandon his horse that he loves so much.”

“Well, that is why I believe that those two did get attacked, but were able to escape without being harmed. A few days ago, those who lived nearest to the ruins of Lothlorien stated that the forest randomly went up into flames, without explanation. When they would get close to examine it, they said they could smell a stench most foul, like burning flesh.”

“Faronion,” Arwen gasped lightly, which caused Aragorn to nod.

“After finding this out, I sent letters to the other surrounding kingdoms to tell us if they spotted Faronion and Minasel. As for the abandoned kingdoms, I sent two of my companions to go out around those areas and see if they could find those two.”

“By companions, you mean-”

“Legolas Greenleaf and Gimli, son of Gloin.”

Arwen winced as Aragorn uttered those names, “And you are sure that Legolas should try to find them? You know Minasel’s thoughts on him, right?”

“Yes, I am very well aware. I had to disarm her and pull her off his back last time, remember? That is why I also asked for Gimli, he would be able to calm her down and, hopefully, make sure she does not kill Legolas.”

Arwen nods, then lays down next to Aragorn, letting out a soft yawn, “I hope they can find those two.”

Aragorn nods, “Me too.”

~~~~~

Faronion woke up in one of the scariest of positions imaginable. It was not that he was sleeping on one of the walkways near Mirkwood’s cells, but that he was sleeping on the edge of the walkway, where there was an opening and gigantic drop to the water below. One of his arms and one of his legs were dangling over the edge, so he knew that if he moved a little bit more in his sleep, he would fall off and sink into the depths. Faronion slid away from the edge and stood up, dusting himself off. He had taken off his armor and cloak during the night, so he was only wearing a long blue leather coat, grey pants, and black boots. Faronion quickly put his armor and gloves on, then strapped the sheath that held his sword on his person. He made his way to the cell that Minasel was in, but found that she was nowhere to be found. 

“Minasel?” Faronion asked, looking at every corner of the cell. 

The more he looked around the cell, the more scared he felt. Faronion stepped out of the cell and looked around the area. 

“Minasel!” Faronion called out, but he heard nothing back.

Faronion started to freak out, bouncing on his feet, then he stopped, and his eyes looked out in horror. 

“Oh Valar!” Faronion said before laying down on his stomach and looking over the edge of the walk way, into the water below, “MINASEL!”

Faronion could hear nothing back, but he stood up and looked around, feeling his heart beat right out of his chest. 

“Okay, Faronion,” he muttered, talking to himself, “calm down. Before you come to THAT conclusion, maybe she just wandered off. Yeah, she just wandered off.”

Faronion ran all around Mirkwood, calling out for Minasel. He felt a bit lost running around the kingdom, since everything looked the same and there were so many rooms, that Faronion was not sure which ones he already looked into. Luckily, the dark night has turned into a bright day, and light was shining through the little windows of the kingdom, so Faronion was not stumbling around in complete darkness. 

Soon, Faronion went down a flight of stairs and was in the king's room. It was a large room with many tree-like pillars, a wooden wardrobe, a long seating area full of pillows, and a rounded bathing area towards the back. At the side of this bathing area is Minasel, with her boots off, pants rolled up to her knee, and her feet in clear water. She is humming and kicking the water around, a carefree smile on her face. Faronion sighed, happy that she is safe, and makes his way to the bathing area. Minasel looks over at Faronion and smiles.

“Good morning, captain!” Minasel exclaimed.

“Good morning, captain,” Faronion answered back, looking at the water, “what are you doing?”

“Playing in the king's bath! Can’t you believe that there is still water in it?!”

“Minasel, that’s kind of gross. Do you even know how old this water could be?”

“Come on! It is completely clear!” 

“Still doesn’t make it any less disgusting.”

Minasel furrowed her eyebrows at Faronion, then proceeded to kick water in his direction, getting some droplets on his armor. Faronion made a disgusted face which made Minasel laugh as she took her feet out of the water and stood up. She then proceeded to roll down her pants and pull on her brown boots, which reached just under her knee. As she finished pulling on her boots, Faronion touched her shoulder. 

“Hey Minasel… about last night… are you okay?” Faronion asked, making sure he was careful with his words.

Minasel sighed then turned to face Faronion. She gave a slight smile and shrugged her shoulders, seeming a little bit unsure on how to feel.

“I guess I’m alright,” Minasel began, “it was a little difficult watching those orcs… do what they did to my Nana’s grave, but they won’t do that anymore. I went back this morning, before you woke up, and tried to fix as much as I could. I even decorated the area with as many flowers as I could find. But I must ask if you are okay?”

“I was a bit worried,” Faronion shrugged, “I never seen you act so hysterical and I wasn’t sure what was happening to you. I just did what I thought would help you and that was to make you as comfortable as possible, which seemed to work. I wasn’t scared of that… for some reason this morning scared me even worse than last night.”

“What do you mean?”

Faronion stood still for a moment. The feeling of worry came back again as he felt his head start to pulse and legs feel weak. Minasel immediately saw this, took a hold of Faronion, and led him over to the large sitting area where they both sat down. Faronion held onto his head and took deep, shaky breaths. 

“This morning you weren’t in your cell,” Faronion muttered, looking down at the floor, “after what happened last night, I was so worried about what might have happened to you. I wasn’t sure if what happened caused you to run away or… something else, and I just felt so worried that my best friend was gone.”

“Oh Faronion,” Minasel sighed, moving Faronion so he’s head was laying on her lap.

“I’m sorry, Faronion,” Minasel said, running her fingers through his brown hair, “I will make sure to tell you next time of my whereabouts if I have one of these meltdowns in front of you again, but you should also know that I would never do anything drastic. I made a promise, and I plan to keep that promise for as long as I live.”

“Thank you, Minas.” Faronion sighed.

Minasel smiled and continued to pet Faronion hair until he sat up, and they walked out of the room. As they walk out of the room, they look at all the stairs and pathways they could follow.

“Is there even an exit to this place?” Faronion groaned, slumping his shoulders.

“Well… there is one…” Minasel said, with a smirk coming across her lips, which caused Faronion to tense up. 

“W-w-what do you mean?”

“Oh… you know what I mean…”

“No…”

“Oh yes, my dear friend…”

“We are not escaping by barrel!”

“Oh Faronion, why so scared? It can’t be that dangerous.”

“Yes it can! This place has been abandoned for years!”

“What’s the worst that can happen? The barrels capsize and we drown? Would probably happen. There is so much debris in the river that the barrels break apart and we drown? Would most definitely happen. There is not water to break our fall when rolling down the ramp and we die upon impact? A very high possibility. But hey! If it is our time to go, then it is our time to go, and we need to accept that maybe the way we die is by riding creaking old barrels down a dangerous river.”

“I DO NOT WANT MY CAUSE OF DEATH TO BE BY BARRELS!”

Faronion’s body froze in place, teeth clamped together, and an angry, but scared, look in his eyes. Minasel let out a hearty laugh at her friend and slapped her hand on his back, which caused him to stumble forward a bit.

“I was only joking, Faron,” Minasel laughed, wiping away tears that were forming in her eyes, “I actually found an exit when I was wandering around this morning. Follow me.”

“Can’t fault me when you always say the strangest things and actually mean them,” Faronion grumbled and followed behind Minasel.

They climbed up a long flight of stairs before reaching a wooden door. Upon opening the door, there revealed a pathway that ran along the river that the barrels of the woodland realm once flowed down. The river itself almost looked nonexistent, with large branches stacked in the water, causing the level of the water to become smaller the more Faronion and Minasel walked down the path. They soon passed by a set of gates that would once open and close, letting barrels go out of the kingdom, but now they were chained together, making sure no one would be able to open them again. Minasel stopped and looked at the lever that once opened the gates, which caught Faronion’s attention. He stopped in his tracks, knowing what was going to come next. 

Like Faronion suspected, Minasel sprinted over to the area, hurdling over steps before sliding next to the gigantic wooden lever. Faronion slowly made his way over to the area, watching as Minasel lightly ran her fingers tips over the bumpy grain of the wood. She admired how it looked and Faronion swore that she might have started daydreaming. Minasel then grabbed onto the top of the lever and tried to pull it down, but it would hardly budge. The gates below could be heard struggling to open, but it would soon stop with the clanking of the chains that bound the two iron gates together. Minasel huffed in disappointment as she took a few steps away from the lever. 

“Pity,” Minasel grumbled.

“I am guessing you were expecting it to work?” Faronion asked, stepping over to look at the lever himself. 

“Not really expecting, but hoping. Apparently my father pulled this lever once.”

“He did?”

“Yeah. From what the dwarves in the Company told me, he was trying to help them escape before getting shot in the knee by a poisoned arrow, but, of course, my mother saved him and he was able to help them move forward.”

“That’s incredible. I am surprised I never read that part in Bilbo’s story.”

“It is all about political matters, Faronion. It was supposed to be kept secret, because, at the time, the dwarves of Erebor could not have the world knowing that one of their kind had relations with an elf. It would have been bad for their image.”

“But… they can know now…right?”

As Faronion said this, he pointed at Minasel’s chest plate. Minasel, knowing what he is gesturing to, reached under her chest plate and pulled out the small, red journal that once belonged to Bilbo Baggins. She cradled the book in her arms as she looked down and ran her thumb across the bindings of the journal. Minasel took some time staring at the journal and contemplating before putting the book behind her chest plate and nodding at Faronion.

“I think so,” Minasel said with a soft smile on her face.

Faronion and Minasel then continued to follow the path until the small river started to spread out into a large lake and the path, with the forest, reached an end, leaving a small island of rocks in its place. Faronion and Minasel walked on the rock and looked out on the lake, spotting stone pillars and a large city. 

“Lake-town,” Faronion sighed, “looks like we are almost there!”

“Yes, soon we will-” Minasel said before freezing up, with a stern look on her face.

Faronion looked over to her, “What?”

“Did you hear that?” Minasel muttered.

“Hear what?” Faronion asked. 

After he said that, Faronion could then hear the movement of rocks behind him, which caused him to freeze, as well. Minasel and Faronion moved their eyes to glance at one another as they reached for the weapons on their back. With a slight nod to each other, the two captains spun around with weapons drawn, Faronion pointing his sword and Minasel with her bow drawn. Once turned around, Minasel and Faronion came face to face with the two people they heard behind them; an elf and a dwarf. The elf was a blonde, blue eyed fellow wearing all green, and the dwarf was heavily armored with a helmet on his head and a long red beard. Neither of them had their weapons drawn and just stood in one place, their eyes widened with surprise. Minasel and Faronion knew these two almost instantly, it was Legolas and Gimli. 

“Thank Mahal you two are alive!” Gimli said, a slight stutter in his voice. 

Faronion quickly sheathed his weapon and sighed, “Hello Uncle Gimli. Hello Uncle Legolas.”

While Faronion sheathed his weapon and relaxed, Minasel put her bow and arrow away, but charged full speed at Legolas, yelling. Before Legolas had any time to stop her, Minasel tackled him to the ground and grabbed a hold of his blonde hair, pulling it, before slamming his face into the ground. 

“...every… time…” Legolas muttered out, face held to the ground. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There you go! Faronion backstory segment and the edition of both Legolas and Gimli! A special treat that I did not expect would come to be. I did not plan on having these two in my story, but everything just fell perfectly. 
> 
> Hope you all enjoyed the chapter!


	17. Chapter 16: Let's Talk

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Legolas and Gimli decide to join Faronion and Minasel on their trip to Erebor. However, with Minasel's hate for Legolas, will there ever be peace among the group.

It took some time and a lot of effort, but soon Minasel was soon detached from Legolas, and both were kept a safe distance from each other, with Gimli holding Minasel in his strong arms and Faronion checking on Legolas, who was sitting on the ground, to see if he was injured. Thankfully, Legolas was alright, but he kept a hand on a part of his head, where Minasel grabbed a hold of his hair and started pulling, with a probable intention to pull it out at the roots. However, this action did not seem to be enough for Minasel, as she kicked and wiggled with teeth bared, trying to get out of Gimli’s grasp. The red-haired dwarf locked Minasel’s arms at her side and continued to hold her tight and lift her off the ground, as if he was giving her a gigantic hug. Soon, Minasel’s efforts to escape have ceased and Gimli set her down just to pull her close into a warm, comforting hug. 

“Bless my beard, you two are alive,” Gimli stated yet again, head against Minasel’s and arms on her shoulder, just so she does not escape his act of affection. 

“Why do you keep saying that?” Faronion asked, pulling Legolas to his feet. “You sound like you actually thought we were dead.”

“We honestly were not sure on that matter.” Legolas admitted, trying to ignore Minasel who was trying to claw out of Gimli’s grasp. “You horse arrived in Gondor, but neither you nor Minasel were there. Your parents thought the worst had happened. That was until they got word that Lothlorien was in flames for some _odd_ reason.”

As Legolas said this, he looked up and down Faronion, who turned away, sheepishly, well aware of what he did. Faronion crossed his arms, “I will have you know that there is a perfectly good explanation for why I set Lothlorien on fire in the first place, Uncle Legolas.”  
“Oh, I am sure there is,” Legolas answered back, “but that still begs the question to why you are this far from home in the first place. From what your father had told Gimli and I, you were to report back to him after you visited Rivendell.”

“A group of orcs and their leader had run us out of Rivendell. They have apparently been following us since we arrived in Gondor, so we knew we could not go back in fear that there might be a large army of orcs waiting there for us. We decided to go to Erebor and send a raven to my father from there with our findings, in hopes that it would be safer. However, it seems as though every destination we touch has a group of orcs waiting for us.”

“You are very smart to go this way then. Gimli and I will accompany you to Erebor, just in case you have any more run-ins with other orc groups.”

“Like I am traveling to Erebor with YOU,” Minasel butted in. 

Minasel was now free from Gimli’s grasp and was staring down Legolas with a cold, dead look in her eyes. Legolas was shaken by this but he managed to keep calm and stand his ground, taking a few steps towards the captain of Erebor. 

“Minasel please,” Legolas stated in a slightly stern manner, “the roads are dangerous and orcs have been attacking you at all ends. If Gimli and I join you and Faronion, we can defeat the orc groups together and maybe you will get to the mountain in a more timely manner.”

“I rather face thousands of blood-thirsty orcs then spend one day with you.” Minasel snarled and stomped up to Legolas, standing only inches away and perched on her toes in order to reach his face. “I would be dead before that day arrives.”

“Enough you two!” Faronion walked in between Legolas and Minasel and held his arms out from his side, in order to create a space between them. Faronion then turned his attention to Minasel and placed a hand on each shoulder. “You, my friend, are being absolutely ridiculous right now.”

“I’M being ridiculous?!” Minasel spouted back to him, sounding slightly offended. “How am I being ridiculous?! Do you know what he did to me?! To my mother and father?! He let jealousy get the best of him and it reflected onto my life in a negative way! That I cannot forgive him for!”

“Minasel, please be logical about this. I know he hurt you and you can’t forgive him, but, with him and Uncle Gimli, we could probably get to the mountain faster and be able to send out that letter to my father.”

Minasel stared Faronion down, her arms crossed, but then she turned on her heel, facing away from him, and grunted, “fine. Legol-ASS can come with. I don’t even care.”

“Sure does sound like you care,” Gimli chimed in, watching Minasel stomp away from the group.

“WELL I DON’T!” Minasel shouted before disappearing in the shade of the trees.

And so, the adventure continued, with now the addition of Legolas Greenleaf, son of Thranduil, and Gimli, son of Gloin. Legolas did most of the leading, since he has walked this path before, and the other three followed. The group did not face any of the dangers coming from the orc army, but they faced something even more challenging; the one-sided battle of Minasel and Legolas. Every time Legolas would hop onto something to get a better look at the terrain, Minasel would come up right behind and push him down. When Legolas would talk to either Gimli or Faronion, Minasel would throw a pebble or a stick at Legolas. It certainly was not the actions of a niece playing with her uncle, but more of two family members who have been quarreling for years. 

Gimli and Faronion both saw it fit to separate the two, or at least keep Minasel distracted with something else, which is where having an orc army attack them would be perfect. However, with no orc in sight, Gimli simply switched places with Legolas, so now Legolas was in the back with Faronion and Gimli was up front with Minasel. Gimli distracted his cousin by picking up a conversation with her. They talked about the mountains, weaponry, and Gimli even got on the topic of stars, which Minasel immediately got into. She babbled on and on about constellations and formations, while Legolas stared at her in awe. The way her eyes twinkled about such a topic, how she had a little bounce in her step, and the way the light reflected off her hair, she looked just like an elf he knew long ago. Legolas looked at her then looked down and sighed, which caught Faronion’s attention. 

“Where did I go wrong?” Legolas mumbled quietly, but still loud enough so Faronion could hear.

“I have never seen Minas this angry at a person she is acquainted with before,” Faronion pointed out, thinking about how she seems to treat everyone she knows with a bit of respect, except for Legolas.

“And all for something that happened years ago,” Legolas said, shaking his head at the memory. 

“From what Minas told me, she said that you had feelings for her mother, even though she was in love with her father. Her mother was going to go with her father, but you were there to stop it from happening. Her mother went with you, found out she was pregnant-”

“-and her father never got to find out.” Legolas finished the sentence then bit his bottom lip remembering it all like it was yesterday. 

“That was not all,” Legolas added in. 

“What do you mean?” Faronion asked, looking at Legolas, “What else is there?”

“She was kept in that mountain and treated that way, because my father would not take her. He would take the body of her mother to bury in Mirkwood, because, although banished, she still rightfully belonged there. However, he would not take Minasel, because he did not want to raise someone who was half dwarf. I also got word that Tauriel passed and left behind a baby girl, but… I could not bring myself to take care of her or even see her. I feared that I would just see Tauriel, the elf I once loved and who rejected me. Being with the fellowship and especially Gimli has changed me. I am not the same elf I once was.”

“You are definitely not the same elf ESPECIALLY with Uncle Gimli around.” Faronion chuckled, and nudged Legolas with his elbow. “I know how you and Uncle Gimli feel about each other. That whole ‘elf-friend’ nonsense does not fool me.”

Legolas blushed a bit then smirked and nudged Faronion back, “smart boy, you are. Never thought that would happen with Aragorn as your father. Not only with intelligence, but with your hygiene, as well.”

The two laughed at the subtle jab that had been made at Aragorn, the Legolas sighed and looked down with a solemn look on his face.

“I wish that change would have happened sooner,” Legolas muttered, “I would have done a lot of things differently.”

“Like what?” Faronion asked.

“I would have let Tauriel go with the dwarves. I would have been more supportive of her decisions. I would have definitely stolen Minasel away from that mountain when given that message. Now it’s all too late.”

Faronion looked back up ahead of them at Gimli and Minasel, who were still talking. He contemplated Legolas' problem. He knew that it was not too late for his elvish uncle and his best friend to get along, but he did not know how such a thing could possibly be done.

~~~

It was not long before night had fallen on the group and they decided to set up camp. Legolas, Gimli, and Minasel gathered wood for the fire, which was difficult, because Minasel decided to have an unfriendly competition with Legolas on who could gather the most tinder. Minasel would continuously bump into Legolas and trip him, trying to make his drop all the branches and sticks he was holding. When all the resources needed were there, Faronion set up the sticks and branches in the middle of a cleared circle opening surrounded by trees, and made a campfire for all of them. They all sat around the fire in a half circle, with the order going Minasel, Faronion, Legolas, then Gimli. However, Faronion soon stood up and stretched his arms out. 

“I need to talk with Uncle Gimli,” Faronion said, and, without waiting for an answer, he moved and sat between Gimli and Legolas, which caused Legolas to sit next to Minasel.

Gimli was about to say something about what Faronion had just done and what danger he had set for them since he Legolas and Minasel were now sitting together, but, before he could let out a single word, Faronion shushed him and gestured to Minasel; she was completely still. Not lunging or attacking Legolas, but completely frozen in place, as if she were a statue. She tugged at the hood of her cloak and tried to pull it over her head as far as she could in hopes that it would cover her face. Campfires are a time of recollection and talking. It is supposed to be a time of relaxation and a way for people to bring out what is on their mind; Minasel knows that. Unless they are under an actual attack, Minasel cannot fight and must stay seated there until it is time to leave. Gimli nods, realizing what Faronion was doing then decided to start a conversation with the group. 

“So,” Gimli began, “I heard that you went to the Mines of Moria.”

“We did, Uncle Gimli,” Faronion answered back. 

“A lovely place it once was. I am sorry you could not see it in its full glory, kids.” Gimli stated, his voice sounding a bit hoarse as he remembered how the place once looked. 

“It’s alright, cousin. I could imagine what it probably looked like when it was full of life.” Minasel chimed in, keeping her eyes fixed on Gimli so she does not look at Legolas. 

“Did you see Balin’s tomb?” Gimli asked.

“Yes we did.” Faronion answered. “It made me sad what happened to him.”

“Yes, it was very sad.” Gimli sighed. “When the fellowship went there, everyone was a bit devastated with what happened. Even Legolas.” 

“Legolas?” Minasel questioned and looked up and Legolas, a confused look on her face. 

“Of course he did!” Gimli exclaimed with a smile on his face. “Legolas is very sympathetic.”

“Th-that’s true,” Legolas stuttered, confused about what's going on, but decides to go along with it. 

“In fact, Legolas is one of the most sympathetic elves I know.” Gimli pointed out, letting out a hearty chuckle. “He is always there to be a friend to anyone who needs it, no matter the race.”

“Is that true?” Minasel asked, looking at Gimli then over to Legolas. 

“O-of course,” Legolas answered, still hesitant, but feeling more sure about what is going on. 

“We did not name him the honorary ‘elf-friend’ for nothing,” Gimli said, giving Minasel a reassuring smile. 

“Hey Uncle Gimli,” Faronion jumped in, looking at Gimli, “didn’t you say that Legolas has helped the dwarves many times?”

“Ah yes, he has. He does not do much heavy lifting, but he is willing to assist in any way he can if a dwarf needs help. Once, a dwarf merchant was struggling with trying to bring his wares to his shop, and, although he could only carry a few boxes at a time, Legolas helped carry all the wares to the merchants shop and didn’t even ask for anything in return!”

“Wow. Uncle Legolas really does like dwarves, doesn’t he?”

“Not just like them, laddie. He loves them! If he didn’t, why would he spend every day with the likes of me?!”

Gimli and Faronion both laughed, with Legolas joining in with a slight chuckle under his breath. He knew what Gimli and Faronion were doing, talking about what good he had done for dwarves in front of Minasel. Maybe hearing about this change in his character will help Minasel see him in a good light. 

“Uncle Legolas must really have great respect towards their dwarves,” Faronion said, still slightly giggling.

“That he does,” Gimli nodded. 

“Not all of them…” Minasel mumbled, which caused everyone to look over to her. 

Their plan completely failed!

Minasel got up, dusted off her clothes, then looked Legolas dead in the eye, “he does not respect all dwarves.”

With that, Minasel walked away from the group and disappeared in the dark shade of the trees. The three remaining members looked down and groaned in defeat. 

“I for sure thought that would work,” Gimli grumbled, wiping sweat off his forehead. 

“Same here,” Faronion sighed before standing up, “I am going to go find her. Hopefully she will come back and not be too mad.”

“You stay here, Faronion,” Legolas says, walking up behind Faronion and placing a hand on his shoulder, “I will go get her.” 

Before anyone could say anything, Legolas walked into the forest, following the same path Minasel did. Faronion and Gimli were left dumbfounded, but soon relaxed a bit with a sigh. 

“If Minasel comes back and Legolas does not,” Gimli said, bringing out a metal flask from his coat, “I think it is safe to say Minasel finally killed him and buried the body.”

“That’s not too improbable,” Faronion sighed, holding his hand out to have the flask after Gimli was done. 

~~~

Legolas walked through the forest, looking everywhere to see if he could find Minasel. He was no ranger, he could not use small details to find someone, he had to strictly rely on his eyes, which is hard since it is almost pitch black outside. He pushed away branches and tripped over tree roots until he was out of the forest and in an open area. There was a small ledge and a big body of water glistened in the bright moonlight. In the distance there was Erebor, shining blue and silver with the help of the moon. The sky was decorated with billions of little stars, dancing and twinkling in the night sky. Where the land and the water meet sat Minasel, back to him and her cloak wrapped around her like she was a swaddled baby. Legolas went to touch her, but he pulled his hand away and simply sat down right next to Minasel, his legs crossed like hers. He could now see her face, her eyebrows were furrowed, but she looked as if she was about to cry. 

“Had enough of them stroking your ego,” Minasel mumbled, keeping her eyes on her reflection in the water. 

“Trust me,” Legolas groaned, looking at his own reflection, “I had no part in what they were doing.”

“It seemed like you absolutely LOVED the attention. Anything that tells you about how you are SUCH a good guy.”

Legolas frowned hearing the frustration in Minasel’s voice. He needed to try a different approach to this. 

“I came to check up on you,” Legolas muttered. 

“You checked on me.” Minasel muttered back and pulled the hood of her cloak over her eyes. “Now go!”

This way was not working either. He needed to do something different. So, Legolas did not move, he did not speak, he just simply sat beside Minasel, closed his eyes, and crossed his arms. Minasel looked over at him, confusion painted over her face. 

“What are you doing?” Minasel asked, unwrapping her cloak from her body and crossing her arms. 

Legolas did not answer. 

“Why aren’t you saying anything?” Minasel asked again, now scooting closer to look at Legolas. 

Again, Legolas did not answer. 

Minasel huffed and turned her body away from Legolas, arms crossed. Legolas knew what he was doing with this. He is usually talking, trying persuade Minasel that he is a changed person, and Minasel was the one to argue back. This time he was done talking. He was going to let Minasel do all the talking. Before he knew it, Minasel was tapping her finger and fidgeting in place. She was getting agitated with the silence between them. Then, she finally said something. 

“Do you know what it’s like to have a parent die?” Minasel muttered under her brief, which caused Legolas to look over at her. 

“Of course,” Legolas answered, “my mother died when I was young.”

“What about both parents?”

Legolas stayed silent. He knew he could not answer this question.

“Of course you don’t,” Minasel snarled, “you don’t know anything about what I went through! Both of my parents died before I was even born, and, if you want to make it even worse, MY FATHER DID NOT EVEN KNOW I GOING TO COME INTO THIS WORLD, BECAUSE OF WHAT YOU DID!”

“Isn’t that sad,” Minasel mumbled, feeling tears heat up her eyes as she looked back at her reflection, “I like to believe that my father would be proud of me, but who's to say he would. Maybe he never wanted to be a parent. Maybe he didn’t actually love my mother and everything she wrote about was in her head. I will never be able to know any of that.”

Legolas took a moment to take in everything. He would only get to the point of her saying, ‘I hate you, because you seperated my parents, and tried to break my family up.’ This was something new to him. Legolas stayed silent for a minute, then decided to talk. 

“I believe your father loved your mother very much,” Legolas said, which made Minasel finally make eye contact with him. 

“How do you know?” Minasel asked, a little unsure, but slightly hopefully. 

“Well, I was actually there and saw everything that happened that day when your mother met your father.” Legolas smiled at Minasel then put is fist under his chin, trying to remember that day. “With me being, as you call it, a jealous elf, I was very attentive and cautious about your mother around those dwarves, especially a certain black haired archer. He kept making eyes and telling the most inappropriate jokes at her, and I found something suspicious about his behavior. So, when I saw your mother leave the feast, I knew I had to follow. I was not surprised to see that she went straight to the dungeons and was sitting next to the cell of that black haired archer. I did not move from where I stood. I don’t know why, but I believe it was because I saw something in both of their eyes. There was this little glimmer when they looked at each other, that was full of passion and love. I have only seen a look like that once, long ago, when my father would stare at my mother the same way.”

Minasel looked up at him in awe, then a smile creeped over her face and she hugged herself with her cheeks slightly red, thinking of such a moment between her parents. Legolas looked at her, tilted his head to the side, then let out a soft chuckle. Minasel looked over at him, a bit concerned. 

“What?” Minasel asked, tilting her head to the side with Legolas. 

“It just now occurred to me,” Legolas smiled, straightening his head, “you actually look a lot like him.” 

“I do?” Minasel asked and looked down at her reflection in the mirror. 

“Of course the hair and ears are a little different and your skin is not as rugged, but, other than those, you are a spitting image of him.” 

“I was always told I look like him, but I refused to believe it.” Minasel said as she looked at her reflection and touched every part of her face, from her thick eyebrows, to the point of her nose. She then felt herself be pulled up and face to face with Legolas. 

“Well, whoever said that was right. Although, you do have a lot of characteristics of your mother, as well. You are the perfect mix of both.” Legolas said, smiling at her.

“I noticed you seem to have a bit of a sparkle in your eye when you get excited.” Legolas pointed out. “The same thing would happen to your mother when she was absolutely enthralled with something. I swear, it was like all the stars were plucked from the sky and placed in her eyes when she was happy.” 

Minasel looked up at Legolas then sat down in front of him, as if she was an excited child being told a story before bed, “could you tell me more about my mother?”

Legolas smiled and nodded his head. They probably sat in that spot for hours, with Legolas telling childhood stories about Tauriel and Minasel taking it all in. Before they knew it, they could see orange rays on the sun as it rose above the water and night turned to early morning. 

~~~

Everyone soon grouped back together and they walked to their next destination. In order to get to Erebor, they must first cross a large body of water. When they got to the water, they found a dock with two wooden row boats, sitting on the shore. 

“Perfect!” Gimli exclaimed, clapping his hands together, “Faronion and Minasel could take one boat, and Legolas and I could take another.”

“It’s fine, cousin,” Minasel butted in, “Legolas and I can share a boat.”

“Are you sure about that?” Gimli asked and looked at Minasel with a surprised and concerned look on his face, but Minasel just nodded in agreement.

With great hesitation, Faronion and Gimli got their boat ready and pushed it into the water, both taking and ore to paddle. Minasel and Legolas soon followed after and the group started to row towards the mountain. Suddenly, Minasel stopped rowing with Legolas and started rowing the opposite way, causing their boat to spin in circles. Faronion and Gimli both noticed this and stopped their boat. They both watched the spinning boat, nervous about what may happen next. Was Minasel going to keep the boat spinning so Legolas would get dizzy? Was she trying to distract him so she could push him into the water when the time was right? 

Before Faronion or Gimli could take any course of action to stop what may happen next, they could hear Legolas start laughing. 

“What are you doing?” Legolas asked through his laughter. 

“Round and round we go!” Minasel giggled back, continuing to row. 

“Stop! We are going to be fumbling around if we keep spinning like this!” 

“Then let’s spin the other way!” 

The two started rowing the opposite direction and the boat spun the other direction, as they both laughed like little children. Faronion and Gimli did not know what happened last night, but it was enough for Minasel and Legolas’ decades long conflict to end. After some time, Minasel and Legolas started to row again and it wasn’t long before the group of four were at shore. Off in the distance, across hills, fields , and cliffs, lay a single solitary peak, ruled by King Thorin III Stonehelm. Finally, Minasel and Faronion arrived at Minasel’s home; Erebor.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this chapter took so long! I was dealing with a lot of personal feelings that kept me from wanting to write more. I am bit better now and I can hopefully write more!  
> Hope you all have a good day and please comment and let me know what you think about the story so far!


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